ZooTwoPia
by derrandumbthrowaway
Summary: It's been nine months since Bellweather's plan was foiled and the ewe was arrested. Zootopia is safe once again, but one mammal is still wanted and on the loose: Doug, Bellweather's accomplice. Nick, now part of the ZPD, joins Judy in a new assignment: to bring him to justice. Join our heroes on another journey of action, drama and adventure! Reviews are heavily appreciated!
1. Prologue: Hearing Voices

**Credits: Massive thanks to /u/ShippingMammals for writing advice and /u/redman404 for motivation, and /u/TakeMyKnot for the name logo. Photo was randomly found in Google Images.**

"Hummmmmmm…" Yax meditates by himself in his pitch-black room, which is covered both in thick, velvety curtains… and in his body odor.

"Hummmmmmm…? What was that, man?" Yax asks himself.

Yax felt light-headed as if he's entered into a state of trance. He hears a voice not with his ears, but with his heart.

"Okay…" Yax mutters to himself.

"All right… I'll go and tell Nangi, man." Yax says to the air as he stands up and walks to the door.

Yax steps outside into the courtyard. He approaches the elephant yoga teacher Nangi, who is in the middle of a class session and she is currently in the crane pose.

"Hello, Yax. I am teaching a class right now. You are desecrating my chakra and my students' chakra. Talk to me later." Nangi tells Yax with a voice filled with disappointment and annoyance.

"But, Nangi, I heard it, man… I really heard it… It told me to… to return everything back to normal a-and bring us back from destruction." Yax mumbles to the naked elephant.

"What are you talking about, Yax?" Nangi asks with a stern face, awaiting Yax's lunatic mumbo-jumbo to end.

"I heard… the voice of nature… man." Yax says as Nangi's eyes open wide, as if she was in disbelief.

"The voice of nature… You've achieved enlightenment and… it chose… you? Follow me, we must talk in private." Nangi whispers to Yax. The other yogi students return to a standing position and stare at the two, with faces of confusion.

"I-I am very sorry, my students, but I have some business to attend to… class is dismissed." Nangi apologizes as she hears a plethora of groans from her yoga students as they walk away.

Nangi and Yax walk back into Yax's room and Nangi closes the door.


	2. Where Anyone Can Be Anything

_Welcome to Zootopia._

 _This is a city build for animals, by animals and to animals. In here, they try to coexist as predator and prey. They do their best to keep that in harmony. Unfortunately, nine months ago, a crazy assistant mayor named Bellweather tried to destroy that harmony. She has had a traumatic past of being bullied by predators and wanted to make Zootopia a haven for prey only, and she made predators go savage with the use of a flower called the Night Howler. But a dynamic duo managed to prevent her from taking over and now she's behind bars. The framed mayor, Mayor Lionheart, was shortly re-instated._

 _This is Judy Hopps, and she is the first bunny officer of the ZPD. Even though the odds were against her, she wasn't able to stop her alone. Herfriend and partner Nick is a red fox who helped the rabbit throughout the ordeal and even stood up for her. He was a hustler who lived off the streets. Judy somehow managed to turn him around and he finally became a member of the ZPD, too. Now, they are both cops working to make Zootopia and even better place._

The fox and rabbit officers escorted Flash the sloth out of his sweet racecar into their cruiser. Flash is wearing his ordinary green shirt with a soda stain, and he appears to be very worried.

"Sorry…Officers…I…Was…Late…For…Work." The sloth turned his head slowly and looked at us.

"Yeah, right!" Judy smiled as she handcuffed the sloth. "You can't race in here, buddy."

"Sucks for you, Flash but this isn't the first time you've done this!" Nick sputtered as he was rocking his aviators.

"Okay…How…Much-"

"Don't even think about bribing m-" Judy frowned as she was interrupted by the drag-racing sloth.

"Do…I…Have…To…Pay?"

"You're coming with us. Not even a hundred-yard dash can help you now, Flashy." Nick told the sloth.

Slowly but surely, Judy helped Nick place the slow sloth into the back of the cruiser. Funny thing was that he was trying to escape… slowly.

"Hopps to Dispatch. 10-22 on the street racer. Get a tow truck over here."

"Dispatch here! 10-19 with the suspect." Clawhauser responded.

"Hey, Clawhauser. Brew me a coffee when we get there alright?" Nick said to Judy's radio.

"No problemo, mi amigo! Chief has a new assignment for you, by the way. 10-19."

"Hopefully it's not about buying more Gazelle stuff for him." Judy muttered as the duo chuckled.

After a short drive, they arrive at the ZPD station. Out of all the districts, this was the biggest station. It still has that smooth sandy finish from 9 months ago, but it's still just as sturdy.

"Alright, Carrots. Can you go and lock up Flash? I'll get my coffee and report to Chief." Nick told his faithful partner.

Judy took Flash out of the back seat, dragged him with the handcuffs, and brought him to Officer Wolfe, the jail guard. The trip was probably too much for Flash. His eyes are wide open and he seems stressed.

"Oopsies! Sorry, Flash." Judy smiled to the traumatized sloth. "Hey Wolfe!"

The sleeping wolf jumped out of his chair and fell on the floor. He got up in a matter of seconds and saluted at Judy for some reason.

"Okay… SLOWLY place this sloth in a cell for me, will you?" Judy emphasized on the word 'slowly' to the drowsy wolf.

The wolf gives Judy a thumbs up, takes the sloth, and drags him. He opens the door to the jail cells just as Judy leaves to return to the main hall and wait for Nick.


	3. Our First Case

" _I still can't believe it, but Nick and I are finally both part of the ZPD._ " Judy thought to herself as she remembers Nick hustling her back in Jerry Jumbeaux Jr.'s Café.

" _To be honest, I thought it was adorable when his face lit up during the graduation."_ Judy remembered giving Nick his police officer badge in the graduation a few weeks ago. She remembered Nick's shining smile and stared directly in each other's eyes, knowing that they trust each other with their own lives.

" _I didn't expect him to survive boot camp, but he and his smug attitude made news when he became the first fox on the force, just like when I became the first bunny on the force._ " Judy kept wandering as she leaned beside the central desk where Clawhauser usually sits.

"Hey, Nick!" Judy called Nick as he was walking towards her with a file folder in his left paw, a cup of coffee in his right and a smug smile on his face. Judy still feels weird seeing him in a cop uniform and looking so optimistic about his future, completely different to the introvert, hustling fox Judy met nine months ago.

"Carrots! It looks like we're getting our first case together! Chief told us to visit the Docks. We're supposed to investigate an abandoned fishery. Officer McHorn said he spotted ol' Doug hanging around that place."

"Doug… wasn't he the ram who started that Night Howler incident nine months ago?"

"Come on, your little head forgot about that? I'm surprised you still remember Gazelle's Animalia concert… and what happened at the bridge."

"…Shut up, Nick." Judy was annoyed, as her confession under the bridge where Nick saw that HE got to her.

"I'll drive, alright?" Nick laughed as he put his shades on, as the duo walk out of the station.

" _Our first case together... It feels a lot like our second one to be honest_." Judy thought to herself as she looked at Zootopia from the passenger seat.

The two drove to the docks and arrived at the fishery... and the bridge where Judy broke down on. Like the abandoned fishery, the bridge was a faded in colour with more vines enveloping the structure since the last time they were here.

"Hey Carrots, remember that bridge?" Nick snickered with a sly smile in his face while he drives the cruiser.

"… Dumb fox." Judy shifted her view to the right to hide her blushing cheeks.

"Sly bunny. Anyways, McHorn said that he saw Doug enter the side of the building. Definitely means that the main door is locked, but let's try it out anyway."

"We should go on foot. Hide the cruiser under the bridge. Bring your tranq gun out, by the way." Judy suggested.

"You know… I went to boot camp. Obviously, I won't forget that of all things." Nick retorted.

They sneaked in through the thin forests besides the fishery. It was like your typical abandoned fishery: quiet, rusty and reeks of a faint fishy scent. A big board greeted us as they approach the main door, faintly spelling out "Zootopia Dock Fishery". A few vines, draining the last of what little life there was left in the building, envelop the rusty steel beams.

They still shine an orange light towards the ground, as if it wants to start all over again. Nick told me this was once a fishing port, but a major accident happened 20 years ago and abandoned since then. He said it as if he was holding back tears. The two approached the gigantic, wooden main door.

As suspected, the main door was locked since pushing it did nothing. It appears to have been barricaded from the inside. Judy and Nick walked to the right side of a building, where they found a rusty metal door. Judy twisted the doorknob, and it creaked open. They walked inside and saw a stack of broken crates sealing the main door, along with a big rusty lock securing an even bigger chain.

"Hey, Carrots," Nick whispered and Judy turned to him; he was kneeling down examining something on the ground. "Hoof prints, right here," he said. I'll bet you a doughnut this is a secret passage." She moved up beside him and looked at the tracks, following them up to the wall, where they simply disappeared.

"Sure," Judy whispered back, "but ONLY if you open it!". Nick started to search around the wall, poking and pulling, searching for possible hidden switches. After five minutes of fruitless searching, he gave up.

"Doug must be really good at hiding the-" Nick said but his words were suddenly cut off.

"Nick?" Judy said and spun around. Nick was laying, apparently unconscious, on the ground. The hair on the back up of Judy's neck stood up and she immediately switched off her light and ducked down. Judy started to reach for her radio to call for help but before her paw was half way there, she felt a sharp sting in the side of her neck and the world went dark.


	4. The Thawed Father, Part II

"Ughhh… sleeping on the job? That's a demotion for me…" Judy opened her eyes. She was trapped inside a tight, cold box. Judy feels a cold breeze hitting her tail and she hear the revving of a car. There's no doubt that she was in Tundratown, locked inside a moving car. She tried to reach for her radio, but it's no use. The box is simply just too small, and she can barely move a muscle.

"Wait… Nick? Hey! Who's carrying this box? This is Officer Judy Hopps of the ZPD! I demand you to release me immediately!"

All of a sudden, a sharp needle struck her arm from a small hole she never noticed and Judy felt her heart beat slower and she passes out again.

The rabbit wakes up again, and this time, she felt like she was being carried. The box quickly turned from cold to warm, as she noticed that she stopped moving.

"Hey! Who is this?! Let me out!" Judy screamed.

"Da. Sure zing!" A familiar voice responded.

Judy was surprised as she realized Koslov, Mr. Big's right-hand man, was carrying her.

Finally, the box opened and Judy fell out of the warm, wooden box into a soft, velvet rug. She looks around and it appears that she's back in Mr. Big's mansion. The fancy candlelights still emit a faint, cold light while the fireplace still harbors a dancing flame, thirsty for destruction. The portrait of Mr. Big's grand mama still hangs alongside two candles, burning with vigilance. There are some mahogany bookshelves to her right and crimson curtains enshroud the gigantic windows in this dark room. Judy spots Nick snoozing right beside her, both of them dumped out of two boxes by Koslov. Nick finally woke up after Judy pricked his nose with her carrot pen.

"WHAWHAWHAWHwhaa… Oh. Hey, Carrots." He says in a casual voice. Nick still looks as smug, minus the fur scruff on his head. He looks around and he examined the entire room… and noticed Koslov standing behind us in a tuxedo.

"Koslov? What're you… Wait a minute, we're in... Mr. Big's mansion and…"

Koslov walks in front of the two and turns the tiny, exquisite, and familiar chair around. It was Mr. Big and he proceeds to greet us both. He's wearing the same suit he wore since the first time Judy met him: A black, wrinkled suit with a fresh red rose pinned near his heart. He appears to be smoking from a pipe, which fills the room with the scent of tobacco.

"Welcome, Nick and Judy. It has been a while since we last met." Mr. Big introduced himself.

"Mister Big!" the fox and rabbit exclaimed. They ran to Mr. Big and kissed his hands.

"This place looks good! Have you done some renovations?" Nick complimented with the arctic shrew, who ignored him.

"Good. It seems you remembered your manners. I know you two are wondering why you are here. I know you are looking for Doug. He is just a hired man, and now, he has signed a new contract, my sources say." Mr. Big says as he stops and puffs on his wooden cigarette pipe.

"He appears to be using a serum that turns us back into our old selves, when we were all wild and uncivilized but this time, he's targeting important individuals instead of just predators." Mr. Big added.

"But that's not much of a concern. We've already made an antidote to cure and prevent savagery. I'm sure we can make another antidote for this one, too." Nick interrupted.

"How can you make an antidote if you don't know what it's made out of? Nicholas, never interrupt me again unless you would like to 'chill out'. After all, I haven't forgotten about the rug." Mr. Big said in a dark voice.

Koslov whistled and opened the hatch, leading to a pit full of ice-cold water. It was much an ice bath filled with liquid nitrogen and there's no escape once you fall. He stared at Nick with his ice-cold eyes. Then, he closed the hatch.

Nick's eyes widen and moves away from Mr. Big. Judy lowered her ears and came forward whilst bowing her head as a sign of respect.

"Please, Mr. Big? May I ask you a few questions?"

"…Go ahead, child." Mr. Big raised his hand in an elderly fashion.

"How did we get here?"

"Simple, Koslov here was spying on the area and noticed you two entering the belly of the beast. I had him tranquilize you for your own safety. That hideout can fit more than one person, you know." Mr. Big explained.

"I see. Secondly, why did Doug accept the contract? Is he planning to try and divide the city yet again?"

"Good question, dear child. I presume those who hired him promised him power and luxury. You see, the contract came from t-"

All of a sudden, a speeding yellow dart hit Mr. Big. He quickly reverted to his ancient instincts. He scampered and cornered himself by one of the bookshelves.

"Mr. Big! Koslov, go get a cage! We have to hold him for now. Judy, try to keep him in that corner!" Nick screamed.

With haste, Koslov ran out and found a small cage. He claimed that it was last used when Fru Fru was still a young child and acted like a spoiled brat. Judy cornered the naturalized Mr. Big, grabbed him, and placed him inside the cage.

"Judy, I think I heard footsteps from the roof. It must be… Doug!" Nick exclaimed.

The two cops ran outside and catched a glimpse of a familiar ram already speeding away in a snowmobile.

"Cheese and Crackers! Koslov, we need to borrow the limo! And take care of Mr. Big!"

"Here are za keyz! Don't vorry. He vill not be harmed vid me around!" Koslov screamed as he tossed his keys for the black limousine parked in front of the mansion.

Judy grabbed the keys mid-air and they got on the limo. It's time to get some answers.


	5. The Fast and the Fur-ious

"Alright, Carrots! Full speed ahead!" Nick screamed as he took out his radio. Nick looks furious, maybe since Mr. Big is a part of his small family. He called Dispatch just to be on the safe side.

"Dispatch! We have a 10-80 on Tundratown! Suspect is riding a green snowmobile!"

No response.

"CLAWHAUSER!" Nick screamed.

"Oh! Sorry, Nick! I was watching the newest Gazelle interview! She's planning to release a new song! What is it?"

"We have a 10-80 on Tundratown! Suspect is driving a green snowmobile!" Nick says to the radio.

"Uh… 10-4! Copy that!" Clawhauser whimpers as he puts down his radio.

Nick looked even angrier. He looks determined to catch Doug, determined to do anything to get revenge on him.

"Hey Nick! Calm down! We just started chasing him. Try to breathe, alright? I need you to be calm on this one." Judy comforted the enraged fox.

The chase continued around Tundratown. Thankfully, it was midnight so not many mammals were outside, and the ones that were got out of the way. The snow was bright, yet hard. Doug doesn't seem to be showing any chance of stopping anytime soon so Judy put the pedal to the metal.

"Doug! Stop the snowmobile right now!" Nick screamed as he opened his window, letting in a gust of cold air.

Doug ignores him, makes a hard left on Frost Street, and splashes a small pile of snow in the limo's windshield. Nick fires a tranq dart at him, but it hit his wool instead, leaving him unaffected. Man, the wool must be his personal shield or something! Shortly after, Nick looked at the road and turned to Judy.

"Perfect! The dart guns are useless! Judy, drive faster." Nick stated.

"Nick? Wha-"

"Trust me. I'm a sly fox, remember?"

Judy initially hesitated, but she has full trust in him. She nods and takes out her radio.

"Dispatch, suspect is a 10-29F and made a left turn to Snowball Drive. 10-24."

Doug still hasn't slowed down. The limo finally catches up to him and is at the left of the snowmobile. Nick unbuckles his seatbelt and climbs out of the window.

"Okay, Judy! I'll see you later!" Nick exclaimed as he jumped onto Doug's snowmobile.

"Nick, what are you doiiiiiiNNNGGG! NICK! YOU CRAZY FOX!"

Nick got lucky and got on the snowmobile, and the ram is fully aware of that. As Nick punches him in his bald spots, Doug effortlessly blocks him with his fluffy wool. Judy rams the snowmobile with the limo, but it just made Nick slightly lose balance. Backup still hasn't arrived, so she sped up and took out her tranq gun and fired a dart right at Doug's face. Doug, being a combat expert, easily expected and dodged the dart and hits Nick on the neck instead. Shortly after, he falls and rolls onto the cold, hard ground earning a few bruises in the process.

"NICK!" Judy screamed and made a hard stop with the limo. She took out her radio and called Dispatch again.

"Dispatch! I have a 10-108! I cannot chase the suspect. 10-24. Suspect was last seen driving north of Snowball Drive and Iceberg Boulevard in a green snowmobile." Judy spun the car around and drove back towards Nick.

The rabbit got out of the limo and inspected Nick. He appears to be out cold and has a few cuts and bruises. Thankfully, none of them appeared to be severe. An ambulance arrives and two deer EMTs puts Nick in a stretcher while Judy went inside with him. One of the EMTs address an adrenaline shot. Nick regains consciousness and groans for a few seconds before he felt normal again.

"Nick, are you alright? Nick? Answer me!" Judy frantically speak as Nick finally wakes up.

"What? Judy? Where's Doug? Nononono... DARN IT! We lost him! Grrrr…" Nick growls at himself.

"Nick… I'm so sorry. I wanted to catch him, but I made a promise to myself. I will never leave you behind, no matter what." she apologize and put her head on Nick's chest.

"Ugh, drats." Nick sighed. "Hopefully the ZPD can catch him. Thanks for staying with me, Judy… but I gotta say… You're a bad shot."

"…And you're a bad fighter." Judy quickly retorted and they laughed and smiled at each other.

The deer EMTs clears his throat out of sheer awkwardness and tries to talk to Nick. Judy sat back down and let the EMT talk.

"Officer Wilde, is it? I've examined your cuts and bruises and it appears they're just minor wounds. There are certainly no ligament damages and hopefully, no broken bones. I'll just put these ice packs on them and in a few hours, you'll be feeling much better."

Nick sighed with relief, but Judy still felt disappointed that she couldn't catch Doug. She takes out her radio and called Dispatch.

"Dispatch, Officer Hopps here. We've… we've lost Doug." Judy said on the radio one more time.

"Hmph. What else did I expect from you two? Don't worry; we got the ball of wool. Alright, get back to the ZPD as soon as possible. We'll debrief there." Bogo replied.

"Never expected that big ol' dumb lummox to actually do something!" Nick was surprised.

"I HEARD THAT!" Bogo screams onto the radio.

Nick and Judy rode on the ambulance and fell asleep on the long trip to the Savanna Central hospital.


	6. Ferris Wheel and Chill?

"Well, we're back in Savanna Central, Nick." Judy woke Nick up napping in the ambulance cot, who suddenly started sniffing around. He smells the car smoke as well as the sweat of citizens walking around in the hot terrain.

"…And it smells just as bad as before." Nick replied as he stares at the yellow sun rising as a new day begins.

Nick and Judy went to the Emergency Room and Nick was laid down on one pf the beds. Shortly after, an armadillo doctor examined his bruises, disinfected and sutured his cuts, and told him to rest in here for about 2 hours.

After 2 hours sitting and sleeping on this big green chair alongside Nick, the doctor returns and gives Nick the medical clearance to return to work. They exit the ER together and Nick seems to be feeling much better. Judy hailed for a taxi to bring them to the ZPD. The two arrived, entered the ZPD station, and met with Chief Bogo.

Chief Bogo's a different mammal from the one Judy met nine months ago. He's more open now. He started socializing with the other officers and started showing tiny Gazelle merchandise in his desk. Heck, sometimes he discusses all about Gazelle with Clawhauser in his free time.

"Officer Hopps…"

"and Officer Wilde here."

"Reporting for duty, sir!" The two cops acknowledged with fatigue.

"That was a pretty disappointing job, you two. Although, I am happy to see that you two have full trust in each other. You know, you should thank the other officers for bringing that Doug in here." Chief Bogo enlightened us.

"Oh, right. Thank you, everyone!" Judy shouted to the entire room, full of officers and ordinary civilians.

"You're welcome." The officers shouted back in a non-chalant voice while the civvies ignored the little rabbit.

"How'd you get him anyway?" Nick asked.

"A simple roadblock misdirection. We chased Doug and surrounded him, preventing him from taking an exit or making a turn. This forcefully led him to the roadblock near the highway. It was tough, but the no-good sack of wool is behind bars right now!" Officer McHorn joined in.

"That… That sounds brilliant! Nice one, bro!" Nick fist bumped the rhinoceros.

"I'm not here for chit-chat, though. Chief, Doug is currently secured and ready for transport to the maximum confinement wing."

"Good. I'll meet you there. Hopps, Wilde, you two deserve the day off. Hopps, try to help Wilde recover his footing before tomorrow. Dismissed." Chief said with a smile.

"Thanks, Chief!" We replied.

Judy changed into her pink-checkered shirt, long beige skirt, and beige sunhat and met with Nick in the main hall, who's wearing his black aviators, a red T-shirt saying "Just Zoo It", and camo cargo shorts.

The main hall is a huge room covered by sepia wallpapers. The walls have a few blue banners embedded with the ZPD badge, Officer of the Month awards (with Judy's portrait for March!) to the right of the room and a bulletin board to the left of the hallway. Clawhauser and his desk are in the centre of the room and he appears to be munching on a Crispy Cream donut filled with sprinkles while watching another Gazelle interview, probably about her new, upcoming song. Judy sees Nick come out of the men's changeroom, which is opposite of the bunny.

"Hey, Nick!"

"And hello to you too, Carrots."

"So, the Chief told me to help you walk around for tomorrow. In addition, I'm quite bored. You wanna walk around Savanna Central with me?" Judy asked the smug fox as she twirled her right foot on the floor.

"Eh… fine. Besides, I don't think I have any plans for today." Nick replied with a smile.

Judy held the back of his shirt, ensuring that he doesn't fall if any of his legs start to hurt. The couple walked out of the station and got some ice cream from Jumbeaux's Café. It's still the same as before, except they started to use scoops and cater every animal of every size, resulting in a booming business. Judy got her favorite carrot flavored popsicle, while Nick went for the new blueberry flavor.

Next, they went to the theaters and watched the newest blockbuster movie: Utopia. It's about a race of fictional bipedal beings called humans who waged war on each other. The protagonist was a male human named Ratonhnhaké:ton, who falls in love with a female human from a rival clan, who happens to be the rival clan war chief's daughter. At the end of the movie, the protagonist marries the daughter of the rival human clan and the two clans made peace and built a community together. It was a success at the box office, too. Judy thought it was a great film while Nick thinks it's just our history mixed with a bit of science fiction, and disliked it.

They continued they tour around Savanna Central, just walking and talking about the chase and rating each other's performance, all while Nick's legs are recovering well. The two got some lunch at the gourmet restaurant La Belle Fleur, where Judy ordered a ratatouille with some garlic breadsticks while Nick ordered a salmon fillet with a side of caviar along with some crawfish cake. It was definitely delicious but it costed them almost 60 bucks, so they split the bill. Later, the couple arrived at the Autumn Festival in the middle of Downtown.

They decided to go and try out some of the game booths. Sadly, they failed to win any of them (even though Nick knew they were all rigged). Lastly, the two got on a Ferris wheel, which appears to touch the dawning sky with its blue metallic wheel, lifting the green carts up and slowly dropping them back to the ground. Nick and Judy got on the #2 cart. The wheel paused as they passed 2/5 around the wheel. The sky lit up a bright orange, warm and beautiful while the winds gave a soft, cool breeze that brushes the rabbit's fur. The sun's rays warmed my fur as they went higher on the wheel. Nick and I gazed our surroundings, admiring the architectural achievement that is the entire city.

"Can you believe it? It's been 2 weeks since this city went haywire. I'm glad you were there, Nick. The city would have been much more different if it wasn't for you. Thank you." Judy smiled to Nick as her ears drooped.

"Heh. Why me all of a sudden? You got me into this mess. You got ME of all people, to go with you! YOU'RE the reason the city is better now, and why I'm a cop now. I… I should thank YOU!" Nick replied as he turned his head and his cheeks turned faint red.

"Oh, please. You did your part too!" Judy blushed and scoffed.

The couple sat there, just enjoying each other's company. All of a sudden, Judy accidentally touched Nick's hand. Both stared at each other for a second and turned their heads away in embarrassment. To break the awkwardness, Judy had to make up a white lie. She pointed towards a random apartment in the distance.

"Look! It's the apartment my parents are living on now!" Judy said with excitement.

"What? They moved here?" Nick was surprised.

"Yeah, after seeing that you were such a great guy at that dinner, Mom and Pop decided to move here."

"So, who's running the farm now?"

"A question with 275 possible answers. I'm not the right bunny that can answer that question!" Judy said as she laughed nervously.

"True, true." Nick said.

The wheel moved and stopped again, up until 2/3 of the entire wheel. Nick stares to the distance and spots the bridge again with his sharp eyesight. Judy acted as if she didn't notice until…

"Oh, look! It's the bridge again!" Nick snickered.

"Grr…Hey! Stop talking about the bridge, Nick!" Judy made a big blush on her cheeks.

"Oh, you bunnies are just so emotional…" Nick patted Judy's head in a playful manner as she brushed his arm off.

While they waited for the Ferris wheel to move again, Judy spota Clawhauser (A big blue blob) exiting the ZPD station. She picked up her cellphone and called him from up here.

"Hey, Ben!" She screamed on her phone.

"Oh. Hey, Judy. Uh… sorry for my behavior earlier." Clawhauser said with a sad voice.

"We'll talk about that later... for now, look at the Ferris wheel!" Judy shouted as her and Nick wave our hands around. Being up so high, he failed to notice us.

"It's alright, Ben. It's the price of a tough job, but you should really control your Gazelle addiction." Nick chuckled as he advised Ben.

"Speaking of Gazelle, did you know she's dating someone right now?" Clawhauser lit up.

"Who's lucky enough to date a girl like Gazelle?" Nick asked with a hint of curiosity.

"Gerard Pronghorn! The famous football defender of the Sahara Scorpions!"

"Him? Well, he IS a good football player, but I didn't expect him of all people to hook up with Gazelle. After all, I made a bet with Finnick that his team would win the Zootopia Cup 2 years ago, but they still lost 1-5 to the Tundratown Tarantulas…"

"…Who went on to thrash the Savannah Splinters 7 to 1 in the final… Wow. I never knew you two were fans of football, too." Judy said to the both of them.

"Maybe, we should go watch a game or something. How does next Saturday sound?" Clawhauser suggested.

" _Next Saturday? That's like… 10 days from now. I hope that the case is solved by then_." Judy thought to herself.

"Sure. We're in!" Nick and Judy said simultaneously.

"Oh look at the time! It's 7:30 PM already! Sorry guys, but I gotta run and catch the train home! See you tomorrow!" Clawhauser sputtered as he ran to the train station.

"Okay! We'll see you tomorrow… and try not to trample on anyone!" Nick said on the phone as Judy was about to hang up.

"Oh, you!" She replied.

The couple sat again, enjoying each other's company until the ride finally ended.

The cart finally completed a circle and their feet touch the cold ground once again. As they headed towards the exit, Nick stopped and turned towards Judy.

"Well, Judy, it's been a great night. I gotta say, I had a lot of fun. I wish it was longer, but I gotta go get some sleep. It's already 8 PM. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay! See you, Blueberry, and get that leg ready for tomorrow!"

"It's Nick, Carrots!" Nick shouted as he started walking to the bus stop to the Rainforest District.

Judy took a different bus to get back home, changed into her pajamas and called it a day as the rabbit got on her bed, turned off the lights and shut her eyes with a smile on her face.


	7. Good Rabbit, Bad Fox

The sun is up, emitting a nice, warm, and orange glow. It's a new day for Zootopia. Judy got up, took a shower, and changed into her casual clothes: a brown V-neck sweater and blue denim jeans with a white belt.

Judy went with her daily breakfast routine: a call to her parents back in the Hopps family farm, a carrot, some homebrew coffee, and a cream cheese bagel. Judy grabbed her duffel bag containing my uniform and equipment, locked the apartment, and headed to the bus stop.

She got on the bus and made her way to the police station. As soon as she enters the station, Nick arrives and he's standing right behind the rabbit. Before she turned around to greet Nick, Judy saw Clawhauser already walking to his desk along with a box of a dozen donuts. She turned around and acknowledged Nick, who seems to have easily recovered from the wounds he sustained from the chase.

"Hey, Nick. How you doing?" Judy greeted the fox with a lively attitude.

"Feeling great as usual, Carrots. What about you?" Nick replies with a smile on his face.

"Same thing. I hope that it isn't going to be more stressful than two days ago. Well, I gotta go change. I'll see you in the briefing room!"

Judy went in the change room and took her uniform out of her duffel bag. She still feels the same strong sense of pride wearing it for six months. She left the change room and met with Nick in front of the debriefing room.

"Ready, Judy?"

"Are you?"

Nick and Judy walked into the debriefing room. Chief is there standing in front of the room and waiting for everyone to take a seat. The two went to the seat in the front of the room and shared it like they did in Nick's first day. Chief Bogo clears his throat and speaks.

"Alright, everyone. It's a new day in Zootopia. Once again, we're here to keep it safe for the whole day and make sure that every mammal is safe and sound."

"Good god, Chief! You've inspired me with astounding confidence… or was that an excerpt from the inspiration book I e-mailed you after my graduation?" Nick joked as the whole room chuckles.

"Grr… Whatever. Alright, here are your first duties for the day." The water buffalo clears his throat, adjusts his glasses and reads the paper in his hands.

"Officers Zoey, Quagmire, Delgato. You will investigate the abandoned fishery." The tigress, lion, and wolf officers stand and leave the room.

Snarlorf, Higgins, Wolfurd. Investigate the car accident in Sahara Square." The polar bear, hippo, and wolf officers also left the room.

"McHorn, Sanders. You two go to Tundratown. Investigate the commotion in there regarding the mafia." The two rhino officers got off their seats and headed straight to the door.

"Hopps, Wilde. You two go to the max prison wing and interrogate Doug. I want all the information inside his tiny head about his recent activities. That is all." Like the others, Nick and Judy stood up and left the room.

The duo arrived at the prison wing. This place is the definition of danger. It was dark, cold and the sound of sobbing and maniacal laughter echo across the empty hallways. The jail guard, Officer Wolfe was asleep by the dark wooden desk until Judy rang the brass bell on the table. He abruptly woke up, fell off his chair. Somehow, he was unfazed and accompanied us to Doug a few rooms down. Doug is there in a white room, sitting quietly and somehow staring at us, even though Wolfe said it was a one-way mirror. It only had a desk chained to his leg, his hands cuffed to a metal bar on the tabletop and two wooden chairs opposite of him for Nick and Judy to sit on.

"Okay, Judy. Let's do this the old-fashioned way. I'll be the bad cop; you'll be the good cop. Officer Wolfe, please get me a hair trimmer and a power sander. We're gonna give this ram a makeover." Nick planned right outside the interrogation room.

Wolfe nods and leaves the prison wing as he fetches the tools. Nick's still pissed off at Doug after the chase two days ago. The officers entered the room and were face-to-face with Doug himself.

"Hello, Doug… How's your stay?" Judy asked with a smile.

"…"

"Don't talk much, do you? I need you to answer these questions. What's in the fishery? What's the serum made of? Why did you shoot Mr. Big? Who hired you?" Nick asked with an angry tone on his voice.

Doug never said a thing. He just stares at Nick then spat on his snout, which he wipes off right away.

"You wanna play this the hard way? Perfect, we've got that set up just for you." Nick says with his eyes staring directly at Doug's eyes.

Nick nods to the one-way mirror and Officer Wolfe comes in with the hair trimmer and the power sander Nick asked for. Nick plugs the hair trimmer in. Judy didn't know he has knowledge and experience about this kind of thing.

"Last chance, Doug. What's in the fishery?" Judy asked with concern for his safety.

"…"

"Okay. Have it your way!" Nick shrugged.

Nick proceeds to shave off Doug's upper body, who was helpless. Judy covered her eyes. It was a bit messy, but now, he looks like a half-baked cookie.

"Come on, Doug. Just answer the questions and we can stop this. Please?" Judy ask him whilst using her bunny eyes. The ram completely ignores her.

"What's the serum made of?" Nick questions him once again.

"I'm not telling any of you..." Doug responds.

"And I'm telling you this. You're testing my patience, Doug…" Nick says again.

"…"

Nick plugs in the power sander and proceeds to smoothen Doug's horns. It was even messier, but now, he looks like a cute Christmas tree ornament! Judy giggled as Nick mocked the disgraced ram. Judy even heard Officer Wolfe chuckling outside.

"Anything?" Judy asked again, trying to hold back a laugh.

"…"

"I'm out of ideas. Judy, you got any?" Nick asks the innocent bunny.

"Maybe… I can bring in some of the officers to… try their artistic skills… on him?"

Doug stares at Judy viciously, and Nick stares right at him.

"Ooh! Good one, let's go ask Chief for help."

Judy and Nick approached Chief, suggested the idea, and laughed at it. Still, he asked if any off-duty officers could meet them on the maximum prison wing. About six officers showed up and were given art supplies from the storage room. They all went in and made Doug their living canvas. They all left at the same time and the two returned…

Doug looks like a mess. He has rainbows on his cheeks, red markers across his lips, some makeup, and even one of the officers tied his smooth horns with ribbons. He looks like he's about to break.

"Well? Is there anything you wanna say?" Judy asked yet again.

"…"

"No? Okay then." Nick warns him.

Nick looks up and thought of the evilest idea ever and he whispered it to Judy's right ear. Her ears and mouth dropped.

"…Hey, Clawhauser. Can you come to the max prison wing? I heard there's a massive Gazelle fan in here. He's very secretive of it, so can you make him show his fanboy-ism to us?" Nick says on his radio as Doug's eyes fill up with rage.

Soon, there was a loud rumble approaching the prison wing. It's a running Clawhauser, and it looks like he has a radio, sheets of paper and a happy yet zombiefied expression on his face!

"Nick! Judy! Where's the fan?!" He says as he pants at the same time.

Nick points toward Doug. Clawhauser quickly runs into the interrogation room. Judy is afraid of what's gonna happen, so she headed out for a water break.

Clawhauser immediately pulled a chair and sat in front of Doug. Doug seems to be losing his mind. Clawhauser shows him his poems and songs, all related to Gazelle. He wouldn't stop talking and Doug looked like he wanted to die.

Judy came back to see Nick smiling while Clawhauser is still inside, talking about Gazelle and even singing her songs and his own written songs, with a voice so sharp that it can pierce even the gates of Heaven. Doug and Wolfe, on the other hand, look distraught.

"Okay, Clawhauser. That's enough. Thanks for the help!" Judy barged in and told Clawhauser, whose gigantic smile turned into a gigantic frown now that he has to go. Nick returned to the room.

"Well? Anything?" Nick asks him one last time.

"…"

Judy came up with one last idea. It sounds ridiculous, but it just might work!

"Well, if you don't say anything, I guess we can go tell Ms. Bellweather that you like her… Where is she again? Oh, right! She's also locked up in here! Maybe we can bring her in here and set you two up on a very awkward date! I'll go get some brunch for you two!" The sly bunny told Doug with a smug look on her face.

"Wait, what?" Nick looked at Judy, confused.

"…NO! NO! DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT! I GIVE UP! I GIVE UP!" Doug cried out with a cherry red blush on his fluffy cheeks.

Unbelievable. It actually worked. The two officers were stunned.

"Well, well, well! It looks like even hardened mercenaries like you have a soft spot for others, too!" Nick snickers and looks at him.

"See, Doug? That wasn't so bad!" Judy comforted Doug.

"Okay, tell us what we want to know. First, what's in the fishery?" Nick questions as Judy took out her carrot pen and notepad.

"…It's my hideout."

"How do we enter it?" Judy asked.

"It doesn't have any buttons. Only a motion sensor camera that's carefully hidden."

"Okay. Why did you naturalize Mr. Big?" Nick questions as his eyes lit up.

"Well, my contractors told me to! I don't have any grudges on that man. I'm just a mercenary, for god's sake."

"Next question. What's the naturalizing serum made out of?" Judy ask the blushing ram yet again.

"I don't know! My contractors supplied them!

"…And exactly who ARE these contractors?"

"They call themselves 'the Circle'. I was hired by one of them, who seems to be wearing a brown blanket or something. He smelled pretty bad, too."

"Judy, you got all of that?" Nick asks and she nods.

"Alright, Wolfe. Looks like we're done here." Nick says to the one-way mirror.

Wolfe walks in and takes Doug back to his cell, which appears to be beside Bellweather's, who is just sitting in there, staring at Judy with vengeance in her eyes. Doug appears to be whimpering on his cell, sitting as far away as he can from Bellweather, avoiding making any kind of visual contact with her.

"Wait!" Doug screamed as they were about to leave. "If you want to enter, you need to do this gesture in front of the wall."

He spreads his arms, then makes a ball with his hand and crushes it.

Nick and Judy left the prison wing and reported to Chief Bogo with the information they got from Doug.

"Good job, you two. I still have a bad feeling about that fishery. Go there and join Zoey, Quagmire, and Delgato. I'll inform them ASAP." Bogo stated.

"Okay, chief. We're on the way." Judy replied.

As soon as they left Bogo's office, Judy couldn't stop wondering of how Nick was able to know such brutal things. With a hint of curiosity, Judy turned to Nick when they arrived at the parking lot.

"Hey, Nick. How do you know all those interrogation techniques?"

"Well Carrots, I was taken in by Mr. Big's grandmama when I was young. It wouldn't be surprise if I told you that I learned a few tricks from her, would it?" Nick replied.

"Ohh… okay, I get it. Anyways, let's go to the fishery."

The officers got inside a cruiser and drove back to the docks.

" _I can't stop thinking about it. Who are 'the Circle' and who's the smelly person in a brown blanket?"_ Judy thought to herself as she looks over at the rising sun shining on Zootopia.


	8. Breaking Baaaaaad

Nick and Judy finally arrived at the fishery. It looked just as depressing as before, only this time, it's noon. Like last time, they entered through the side door and found Officers Zoey, Quagmire, and Delgato walking around the room, looking for a door switch.

"Hey, Hopps and Wilde." Officer Delgato approached the two. "It's best you turn your backs. We've searched for 2 hours around that wall and there's nothing here, except for a lot of footprints… which are mostly ours."

"That's because the wall is a secret door. There's a motion sensor… or maybe a camera hidden in here somewhere. Before we left, Doug gave us a gesture to allow us to go in… but I'm pretty sure that might be a bad thing." Judy explained to the bored officers.

Nick stood in front of the wall and re-enacted the gesture demonstrated by Doug, and then the wall made a crumbling sound and opened. As Judy examine the sunken wall, she noticed that it was made of reinforced steel and the outside was painted and blended to look like rusting metal, like the rest of the fishery. This was definitely Doug's hideout. Before the two were able to go over sunken wall, the trio stopped them and insisted going in first, claiming 'they wanted some action after doing nothing for 2 whole hours.' And so, the two officers stood outside and waited for ten whole minutes.

"Delgato, is everything okay in there?" Judy spoke to her radio.

Static was the only response they heard.

"Delgato, do you copy?"

Not a single word was spoken through the radio.

"…It's been 10 minutes. Something's definitely wrong in there. I'll take lead." Nick said as they ventured through the dark tunnel.

The two heroes entered a laboratory reminiscent to the train laboratory destroyed back in Sahara square. Nick felt a chill go down his spine as he sees an open door on the other side of the room. There are a few lights illuminating the lab with a chemistry set in the center of the blue, metallic room. Like Doug's previous hideout, there's a map of targets in here. They all target important figures: Mr. Big, Chief Bogo, Mayor Lionheart, and even... us. Judy looked at one of the counters by the side and behind it was the three officers piled up together.

"Oh no. Zoey, Quagmire, Delgato!" Judy whispered to Nick.

The three cops were tranquilized on the neck with two different darts. It was pretty clear that they were ambushed and shot with the sleeping darts and the naturalizing darts.

"Nick. Whatever you do, don't walk near them, and don't make any loud noises. They've been double-darted." Judy warned Nick with a soft voice.

"Thanks for the heads up, Carrots."

They slipped through the sleeping trio, into a room and were ambushed by two rams from behind the door. They hit the tranquilizers, broke the darts, and disarmed the officers. The two officers ran through before they were hit again.

"…And it's Woolter and Jesse, ain't it?" Judy turned around to see the two other rams they fought almost nine months ago.

"We know you cops got Doug! Time to kick your sorry tails and ransom you two!" Woolter shouted. "Sucks we used our only darts on those three cops out there. Typical Doug, hoarding all the ammo, thinking he can do everything by himself."

"Uhh… before we get into this, who are 'the Circle'?" Nick questioned.

"We've got a clause in our contract to not tell anyone! Besides, why would we tell you that? Can we fight already? I don't wanna hold hands and sing 'kumbaya', you know." Jesse uttered with annoyance.

Impatience got the best of Jesse as he rushes first with a pipe in his hand. Nick dodges all his attacks, and then tried to sucker punch him. Jesse turns his head quickly and Nick hits his fluff. Meanwhile, Judy kicked Woolter who dodges the attack harmlessly. She spun my foot in a follow-up, but Judy smashes the 2x4 in half instead.

While Judy was about to tackle Woolter, Nick tried to punch Jesse's face, but Jesse blocked and countered him easily with a pipe to the face and Nick staggered. Jesse hits his face again and Nick falls to the ground.

"NICK!" Judy was mortified to see her partner go down screamed Woolter swung a part of the broken 2x4 to the back of her head, and throws the rabbit to the wall, near a few sacks.

"Woolter! Why in the world would you do that?! You'll damage the goods!" Judy faintly heard Jesse screaming at Woolter as she tried to stand back up.

After Nick and her get beaten down by a couple of lowlives, Judy was irritated. She wanted to show these rams who's the boss. It took her a few seconds to stand up, then she rushed at Woolter, and stole one of his sticks while dodging the other. Then, she quickly ran to Nick and pulled him away from Jesse. Nick regained consciousness and his head filled up with primal rage. He runs at Jesse, grabs the metal pipe, and Nick revealed his fangs to the scared ram. He bit off some of Jesse's wool, revealing a big weak spot and causing him to scream in agony. Then, he used his claws to scratch the weak spot several times until Jesse passed out of shock. Both of us ambushed Woolter, who was frightened and immobilized when Nick ripped off Jesse's wool. He bites off Woolter's back wool while Judy smacked his face with the 2x4. Then, the officers ganged up on Woolter and kept hitting the bald spot.

The two rams lied face down, knocked out while the Nick and Judy still stood fatigued. Nick calmed down and Judy placed her paw on the fox's head and petted him a little.

"Looks like those teeth CAN be used for something!" Judy wheezed.

"Yeah, but now I'm thirsty. I need some water." Nick panted.

Judy took a quick peek on the previous room, and it looks like the officers remained knocked out cold despite all that noise. This room looked so dark and gloomy. It looks like your typical basement. Cold, grey cement walls surround her while a small, rusty, barred window invites a small ray of light into a room full of darkness. There are four boxes in the corner and judging the dusty, the slight smell of fish and light brown appearance of the box; they were here for a very long time. As Judy search around this lifeless room, Judy remembered the sack pile she fell down beside and Jesse screamed about earlier. She inspected them closely and it seems they're all beige, unmarked bags. It's translucent enough to see yellow powder contained in each one.

"Hey Nick, I think I found the serum's ingredients." Judy called her partner over, who was inspecting the two rams.

"4…8…10. Ten bags. These guys look like they're stacked for a war or something." Nick talked to himself.

As they inspected the bags for clues, the two rams woke up, ran out, and locked the door. It seems that they were able to play dead and they made a ruckus outside. They smashed some of their empty glassware, slammed the metal counters and kicked the officers, essentially waking them up. They locked the door leading back outside. Nick gulped and the three officers heard him and started hitting the door. They quickly pushed two of the boxes in front of the door and stood on the other side of the wall with the metal pipe and 2x4 in hand.

"Great. We're trapped. Even worse, we forgot to cuff them." Nick stating the obvious.

"Dispatch, this is Officer Hopps. We are locked inside the abandoned fishery by the docks with three naturalized officers outside. Requesting emergency e-vac."

"Copy that, Judy! Also, tell Wilde that the Sahara Scorpions won 5-3 against the Rainforest Rangers." Clawhauser disclosed.

"Hah! That's 50! Take that, Finnick!" Nick shouted as he punched the air.

The naturalized officers stopped banging on the door, so Nick and Judy decided to rest on the wall.

"So, Judy. Did you learn to fight like that back in Bunny Burrows?" Nick turned his face to the bunny sitting to his left.

"Yeah, and I got even better in the academy. After Gideon scratched me, I needed to know how to defend myself and other innocent mammals. Why do you think he changed?"

"Oh… Makes sense." Nick replied.

"But why did you use your teeth to bite off their wool?"

"Yeah… sorry if I scared you on that one. I should've used my claws instead, but those rams ticked me off." Nick apologized.

"Don't worry, Nick! That didn't scare me… much. Now, we just have to wait until rescue arrives. I'm tired. I'll take a nap, okay?" Judy muttered as she laid her head down on Nick's lap and hugged his arm.

"Sure, I think I need some rest too." Nick wrapped his tail around the bunny and went to sleep with his hand on her shoulder.


	9. Coffee Break!

"Hopps, Wilde. Wake up! Do that in your home, not in a crime scene!" Officer McHorn said on the radio, making the fox and rabbit jump up.

Backup finally arrived and it's already 3PM. The naturalized officers were tranquilized yet again and were placed into a prison truck, with their limbs tied up. The officers went out and Judy notified the officers to retrieve the unmarked sacks with complete care and transport them to the ZPD and have them analyzed. Nick and Judy went to the ambulance to get themselves treated while the fishery was sealed off; preventing any unauthorized individuals from entering.

Judy retrieved the cruiser underneath the bridge and since they just woke up, the duo decided to get some snacks to fill up their hungry stomachs. They went to the drive-thru of a Snarlbucks not far from. They were greeted by a familiar voice.

"Welcome to Snarlbucks. My name is… Finnick. What can I get you today?"

"Hey, Finnick, ol' bud!" Nick spoke to the microphone.

"Wait... Finnick? You work in here now?" Judy asked the miserable voice.

"Is that… oh great. Hello, Nick and Judy. What can I get you today?"

"Uh… I'll have a frappuccino with… a vegetable breakfast wrap, please!"

"Uh-huh, and what in the world do YOU want, Nick?"

"Is that a way to greet a nice, strong, and handsome fox such as myself? Gimme a macchiato with a grasshopper panini."

"Is that all? Good. That's gonna be… $18.98. Get over here, you punks." Finnick said with an angry tone.

Nick drove to the window and Judy finally sees Finnick. He's wearing the Snarlbucks uniform, appears to be standing on the counter… and Judy's smile and ears jumped and her eyes lit up at the sight of the fennec fox.

"O…M…Goodness! Finnick! You look so adorable in that uniform!" Judy squealed and quickly took a picture.

"I'll throw these at your faces if you say ONE MORE THING about this stupid get-up!" Finnick threatened the rabbit staring at him with a big smile.

"Don't worry, Judy." Nick turned to Judy. "This one's on me."

Nick gave his credit card to the miserable Finnick and paid the bill for the both of us. How nice of him! They parked in the parking lot and ate our food. While sipping on her tasty iced coffee, Judy made some small talk with Nick, whose relaxed with his feet above the steering wheel.

"So, Nick. How did Finnick get a job in there?"

Nick chuckled to himself, lifted his aviators and turned to the rabbit. "Simple. We were two hustlers depending on each other long before you turned me into a cop. Since there's no "parent" to go with his hustle, our hustling trick doesn't work anymore and he was forced to go legit since then. If I remember correctly, the owner of this joint was our first hustle." Nick looked at Finnick serving another customer with the same miserable face.

"Why would he give a job to someone who hustled him?"

"Who knows? I'm betting he went there and apologized… or he blackmailed him. I haven't gone back to hustling ever since we busted Bellweather, so I'm definitely not the most reliable source."

"But you're still his friend, right?"

"Eh… a little bit. At this point, we're just former colleagues. We made a pact to avoid each other as much as we can so that I don't bust him for hustling. We still live in the same apartment, though. Since he's over there, I'm sure his hustling days are over."

"AND YOUR DAYS ARE OVER IF YOU KEEP TALKING ABOUT ME!" Finnick screamed from the drive-thru window.

"Drive." Judy said with a worried face.

"You betcha." Nick replied as he restarted the cruiser and got out of the parking lot.


	10. Gideon's Sweetie Pie

As the officers passed through Sahara Square, Judy looked around the streets and noticed a familiar pink van. It's Gideon Grey's pie van! Nick parked the cruiser in front of the Lululemmings store so she can say hello to the changed fox. Judy found Gideon rummaging the back of his van, taking out a blueberry pie. Nick can smell it from a few feet away and he starting salivating… and wiped his mouth after remembering that he was in public.

"Hey, Gideon!" Judy greeted him from behind.

"Oh! Howdy, Judy and Nick! What're you two doing here?" Gideon was surprised and placed the pie back into one of the trays. He's wearing a pink apron over his normal clothes with his logo saying 'Gideon Grey's Famous Pies'. His combover still hasn't lost its shape and he seems to have gotten thinner.

"We were just about to go back to the ZPD after a tough afternoon by the fishery." Judy replied.

"Yeah. I heard about it on the radio… Judy, don't beat me up, all right? I'm here on business." Gideon asked the rabbit, puzzled with the unusual question.

"What? Of course, not! But what kind of business are you doing in here, if I may ask?" Judy questioned as Nick got closer to the van, tranced by the blueberry pies.

"Well, just like what I did with your mom and pops, I branched out and made a new partner to strengthen my business. In fact, she's walking over here right now!" Gideon said and pointed behind us.

As Nick and Judy turned around, a honey badger approached Nick and her face lit up. She looks very similar to Dr. Badger back in the ZPD.

"Well, well, well! Nick Wilde! Haven't seen you since high school! How are you today?" The honey badger greeted Nick. She was wearing a tank top with short shorts and even has lipstick on as well as an earring on her right ear.

"Honey? You work with Gideon now?" Nick asked.

"Yep, I'm operating a honey and sweets shop three blocks from here. Looks like you've changed since we last met in high school, Nick! Hopefully, my sister hasn't given you any trouble!" Honey laughed.

"Don't worry. She's probably chilling the lab now that she's the head forensic scientist." Nick answered.

"Honey, was it?" Judy questioned the honey badger, who turned her head at the bunny. "You knew Nick?"

"Yep. Back then, he was a ne'er-do-well and was darn smug and evasive. He never talked to anyone, but he was the go-to guy for test answers. He was never caught during his entire time there. Boy, I even got some answers to help out my sis!" Honey laughed.

"So, Honey. What are you doing now?" Nick asked.

"I run a bakery not too far from here. You two should visit sometime!"

"Oh, I'll visit you sometime, sweetie pie!" Gideon said as he took out the blueberry pie again.

"Oh, Gideon! Not in front of our friends!" Honey blushed as she tried to cover her smile with her tail.

"So, you two are officially business partners now?" Nick asked.

"Not just yet, brother. We just met a few days ago outside town. She was asking for directions 'cause she lost her map or somethin'. Now, we're planning on merging!" Gideon happily answered the surprised Nick.

"How nice! Well, we gotta get back to the ZPD station. See you guys later!" Judy said to the pair.

"You too! Later!" They exclaimed.

As they drove off, Nick and Judy saw Honey carrying another blueberry pie beside Gideon towards her shop, which looked very pretty! It had a sign saying 'Honey's Happy Pastry' in a cursive writing, and the windows displayed some delicious honey-based sweets!

"Hey, Nick. Let's visit them sometime! I'd like to try out some of those!" Judy begged Nick, who's keeping his eyes on the road.

"Once our case is solved. Hopefully, they'll give us a discount on those blueberry pies!" Nick smiled and salivated at the thought of the blueberry pies back in Gideon Grey's van and shifted his view back at the road right before they were about to run a red light.

"RED LIGHT, NICK!"

Nick slammed the brakes and shrugged at Judy. The light eventually turned green and the officers drove back to the ZPD.


	11. The Fluffy, Puffy Meadowlands

Nick and Judy got back to the ZPD and met up with Doug, who is still in his cell. He seems to have started growing back a bit of wool on his upper body, but his horns are still as smooth as ever!

"Alright, you baaa-d ball of fluff. Exactly what did that gesture mean?" Judy questioned Doug. Nick sighed with disappointment.

"… It meant to 'dispatch intruders immediately'. I'm surprised you even used it without knowing about it. It gave my guys a chance to prepare and get your hides… but as far as I can tell, that didn't work out well."

"Actually, it ALMOST worked. Since your friends said you were a hoarder, they only had three darts of both kinds with them. I guess they didn't expect five officers to break into your tiny hideout! I should set you up on the rehab group! Bellweather over there has been a member for nine months!" Judy mocked the sulking ram and pointed at Bellweather, who ignored the trio.

"Speaking of your friends, where did they go?" Nick asked.

"…"

"This again? If you don't say anything, I guess we'll just have to shave your lower half and poor ol' Bellweather here will see you in your 'natural' state." Nick intimidated Doug again.

Bellweather immediately gazes at Nick, and Judy noticed her. The sheep immediately turned her head away.

"…Don't. You. Dare." Doug said as he was hopelessly trying to threaten us.

"Alright, Wolfe! Do you mind getting the hair trimmer again?" Nick shouted to Wolfe, who was in the previous hallway.

Doug knows these cops meant business. These guys are taking everything seriously. There's definitely no way out. The fox can easily tell if he's lying or not.

"Ugh. Fine, I'm sure they went to the Meadowlands. They're using my second hideout in 463 Wool Street." Doug confessed and hung his head in shame.

"Thank you very much. Hey, Wolfe. Nevermind!" Nick screamed to the empty hallway.

Wolfe probably never heard any of that. He was snoozing in his chair again when they got here.

Nick and Judy got on the cruiser yet again and headed to the Meadowlands. The Meadowlands is a district that is 90% wool. There's so many janitors around here, picking up shed wool as herds of sheep cross the sidewalks. Cows and goats living amongst the fluffy sheep in harmony. The sun shines a bright yellow as the streets light up with activity and happiness. As the cruiser passed by Wool Street, Nick noticed a wolf strutting proudly while talking loudly on his cellphone and carrying a briefcase on his left paw. He must be a businessman or something.

In just a few blocks, the two arrived at the location. It appears to be some kind of big storage garage. They took out their tranq guns, opened the door, and found nothing but dusty boxes and old memorabilia. While inspecting the boxes for clues, two rams immediately jumped out and made a run for it. It's Woolter and Jesse again. Judy shot at Woolter's bald spot on his back and he falls on the floor.

Hastily, Nick and Judy placed Woolter's body on the backseat of the cruiser, turned on the siren and chased Jesse, who was able to steal a motorcycle from an innocent ewe.

"Jesse, stop the bike now!" Nick screamed into the microphone.

Unsurprisingly, he ignores the fox. Jesse turned around and fired a dart at the car window, but it missed and hit an innocent sheep bystander instead. Everyone completely ignored it until it ate its own clothes and chomped on the strutting wolf's suit, causing him to shout in anger and profanity.

"Dispatch, we have a 10-80 on Wool Street. There's also a naturalized sheep in here. 10-24." Nick radioed to Dispatch.

"10-4! By the way, is the sheep creating any chaos Nick?" Clawhauser asked.

Nick turned around and looks at the sheep still chomping on the wolf's pants and the wolf hopelessly hitting the sheep's wool with his briefcase. "Uh… Yes. Yes, it is."

The officers chased Jessie across Wool Street. He turned towards the residential areas and zipped right through the traffic. Judy had no choice but to keep honking drive in the middle of the road. Later, Jesse returned to Wool Street. He rode the bike across an alleyway, and then he slid right through an even narrower alleyway. The cruiser was too big to pass through and the officers lost.

"Darn it!" Judy picked up her radio. "Dispatch, suspect lost, and heading east towards Fluffy Avenue. Returning to HQ with a 10-29F."

"10-4! Nearby units are on pursuit!" Clawhauser responded.

Judy looked at Woolter at the backseat and he's still sleeping like a baby. The officers received reports saying that Jesse got away. Nick and Judy returned to the ZPD station, threw Woolter in a cell, and locked him up. They also saw Flash trying to climb his cell bars. Next, they went to the Forensics lab. They were greeted by Dr. Badger, Honey's sister. She joined the ZPD Forensics Team after the Night Howler Fiasco nine months ago and she became the head forensic scientist in such a short time. She is regarded as one of Zootopia's top scientists.

"Good evening, Officer Hopps. What can we do for you?" Dr. Badger greeted the bunny as she adjusted her glasses and removed her mask.

"Good evening, Dr. Badger. I'd like to know about the sacks that were brought in here earlier." Judy asked.

"Ah! Perfect timing. We finished analyzing the samples inside. Follow me, and please wear these masks. I don't want you two to get naturalized in here." She threw out her mask and got a new one.

She handed the officers a couple of masks. Nick looked slightly worried because his looks like a muzzle, but he manned up and wore it anyway. They followed the badger to the second room of the forensic wing, protected by a massive plastic screen and. There, they saw the sacks from the fishery and the three naturalized officers, chained up and muzzled to ensure maximum safety. Nick ignored them as they passed by, and Judy held his paw, knowing what the sight of being muzzled meant to him. The three approached a steel table with a sealed yellow powder sitting in the desk. Dr. Badger takes the clipboard sitting beside it.

"Here are the results." Dr. Badger gave the clipboard as she walked away and took a peek in her microscope.

Nick and Judy don't understand a thing in it. There's just a bunch of checkmarks, notes and even a doodle of Rahtonhake:ton with a tomahawk in the bottom right.

"Sorry, Dr. Badger but can you explain this to us?"

Dr. Badger walked back to the two with an embarrassed look.

"Oh! I'm sorry. I got carried away. Well, we've de-structured the compound here. It appears to be a toxic pollen extract of yet another flower. However, this time, we have no clue what that flower is. I told an intern to bring some samples for Mr. Otterton, the top botanist in Zootopia, to analyze, but even he said that he doesn't know where they come from. It's definitely a new species."

She motioned the two to come towards the microscope. Nick and Judy stood behind her as she took another peek into the microscope.

"But what we DO know is that this tiny hair sample we found inside one of the sacks. After analyzing it, we've determined that it is a hair follicle originating from a yak."

" _Oh, great. This entire thing is Yax's fault. I guess we're gonna have to go to the Naturalists' club again. This day just got worse._ " Judy thought to herself.

"Come on, Nick. The only yak we know in here that smells terrible is in Sahara Square. Let's go!" Judy screamed at Nick as she ran to the cruiser.

"Yax? Okay, then. Remember, it's not my fault if you freak out like last time! By the way, thanks Dr. Badger!" Nick shouted as he followed the rabbit.


	12. Naturalizing Intensifies

As the officers ran to the main hall, Clawhauser's radio suddenly goes off, creating a screeching sound that rattled across the room.

"Dispatch! This is Officer Snarlorf! I have a 10-31 on Prairie Road! Suspect is a 10-32, and there is a naturalized giraffe near Lions Gate! 10-24!" Judy heard on Clawhauser's radio.

"Copy that. Sending units now!" Clawhauser responded.

"Dispatch! Officer Higgins here! I have a 10-31 in Palm Avenue! Suspect is a 10-32 and a naturalized rhinoceros is creating chaos in here!"

"10-4! Backup is en route!"

"Dispatch, this is Officer Wolfurd! Two naturalized mammals are causing havoc in McClaw Avenue: a tiger and a wolf! Requesting immediate backup!"

"10-4!" Clawhauser frantically responded.

"Clawhauser! We have a Code 666! Notify every unit in Zootopia now!" Chief Bogo screams as he leaves his office.

Like a flash of light, a dart hits Chief Bogo in the neck, naturalizing him. Immediately, some officers try to wrestle the wild Chief who went berserk and started smashing up the place, but Judy spots Jesse outside, who managed to shoot Bogo through a window while hiding in an alleyway.

"It's Jesse! Nick, come on! We gotta get him!" Judy screamed at Nick as she ran out to the station.

Jesse ran outside through the alleyways and was about to get on a motorcycle. Nick and Judy shot a dart at the tires and the motorcycle was disabled. Judy sprinted and drop kicked a panicked Jesse right in the face. She grabbed him and lifted him up.

"Okay, you silly sheep! What in the world is going on? Why are there so many naturalized mammals now?"

"What do you think? The Circle's enacting their plan now. I'm gonna get paid as soon as this is all over!" Jesse screamed with excitement.

The ram kicked Judy in her vest, and she lost her grip and he runs off. The officers immediately chased after him. When Judy got closer to grabbing him, he reached to his pocket and took out a dart. He injected himself and he became naturalized… and aggressive.

He turned around, head butted the rabbit in the stomach, and she flew to the wall. Nick took out his tranq gun as the naturalized Jesse was charging at him, but he dodged him and the naturalized Jesse quickly turned around. Nick shot a tranq dart right between his eyes and knocked him out. Nick ran over to Judy, slouched on a wall.

"You okay, Carrots?" Nick crouched and offered his hand.

"Are you kidding me? My mom hit me harder than that!" Judy chuckled at Nick as she grabbed his hand and stood up.

"Judy, Nick! 10-24!" Clawhauser said on Nick's radio.

"10-4! We've captured Jesse as well. We'll bring him back there with us." Nick responded as he puts the tranquilized Jesse on his shoulder and they ran back to the station.

The two got back to the station and upon entering, they see Chief Bogo asleep on the floor with a tranq dart on his butt. The place looks like a mess. Most of the decorations were on the floor. Parts of the wall had pits and cracks on them as if Chief wanted to make the building go down. Luckily, no one was gored by his horns. The officers headed to the prison wing and Nick dumped Jesse in a prison cell. As they were about to leave, they heard Woolter singing at Doug. His cell is adjacent to Doug and Bellweather's cells.

"Doug and Bellweather are sitting in a tree! K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"

"Are you kidding me?" Judy shoots Woolter with a tranquilizer dart and he falls asleep. "Nick, let's go."

Nick and Judy got back to the main hall and met with Clawhauser, who looks like he's about to panic.

"Perfect, you two are here! The three rams are in the prison right?"

"Yep. We've captured the whole set! Where's our prize?" Nick said with blatant sarcasm.

"Seriously though, can you gimme a sitrep Clawhauser?" Judy asked.

"Okay. I'll try my best to explain this." Clawhauser took a deep breath and exhaled. "I'm guessing that 'The Circle' commenced their plan. The members appear to be all from naturalist club in Sahara Square. According to the calls I've received, they've successfully naturalized close to 200 civvies: predator and prey. Some of them have been tranquilized and brought to the hospital. The problem is that there's still a few members left creating havoc and that they naturalize themselves before they were caught." Clawhauser calmly explained.

The TVs in the main hallway suddenly tuned into the Emergency Broadcast System. Mayor Lionheart appeared on the screen.

"My dear Zootopia. It has come to my attention that many animals are being naturalized at this point. I am unsure who is causing such a havoc, but I urge all of you citizens to return to your homes and stay inside until this threat has passed. The entire ZPD force is taking care of the problem right now. Stay safe out there. This is Mayor Lionh-" A dart speeds up to Mayor Lionheart's neck and he immediately becomes naturalized. He attacks the TV camera as all of Zootopia heard mammals screaming and the camera cuts off. Everyone in the room was shocked.

"Dispatch! This is Officer LaFleur! I have a 10-80 in Lionheart Avenue! The mayor has been naturalized! I repeat: the mayor has been naturalized! Suspect is a brown yak and is a 10-32! 10-24!" The radio buzzed.

"Everyone else is busy containing this disaster. Can you guys go help her out?"

"Sure. We have to save Zootopia. We gotta stop Yax. Nick, let's go." Judy calmly replied.

"Sure thing, Carrots. Lead the way." Nick motioned Judy to move as he followed the rabbit.

"Dispatch! Suspect naturalized the other officers chasing him! 10-80 on Vapor Road. 10-24!" Officer LaFleur screamed from the radio.

"10-4. Backup is en route, LaFleur!" Clawhauser responded.

Nick and Judy ran to the garage and got a cruiser. Judy turned on the sirens as it illuminated the night sky filled with chaos and disorder as the naturalized animals rage on, while being tranquilized one by one. They sped right through the highway and head to Vapor Road.


	13. The Confrontation

Nick opened the window as he takes a look at the street full of chaos. There was panic everywhere. Nick sees one of the naturalized animals about to leap on an officer, until it was suddenly darted and fell beside the traumatized officer. Judy speeds up and Nick looks down.

"Judy, we gotta get that yak. This place looks like a disaster. He HAS to pay for all of this."

"I know." Judy snapped her fingers. "Concentrate alright? This isn't the first time we've seen the city go nuts."

"This is officer LaFleur! The suspect has headed back to the highway. 10-24."

"10-4, LaFleur. Backup enroute!"

Judy turned right onto the highway ramp and finally joined LaFleur in the pursuit. Yax appears to be driving a red pickup truck. A disgusting smell rivaling the change room fills the cruiser.

"Oh my gosh! I can smell him from here!" Judy cringed her face with absolute disgust.

"Urk! I'm sure he naturalized the officers with that smell!" Nick gagged.

Nick resisted the urge to vomit and grabbed the radio as Judy accelerated catched up with LaFleur. The antelope officer kept her window closed as she locked her eyes on the road.

"Hey, LaFleur! How in the world can you handle that smell?!" Nick asked the focused cop.

"For starters, I don't open the window. Also, I have my lucky pine tree in here! By the way, are you two my only backup?"

"Well, there ARE naturalized mammals in the city. The other officers can't just go to them and tell them to behave themselves. Don't worry, the three of us can take care of him!" Nick responded to the cruiser radio.

Nick immediately closed the window and grabbed the megaphone radio built-in the cruiser.

"Yax! This is the ZPD! Pull over now!" Nick demanded through the radiophone.

Like everyone else, he ignores it. Judy thinks the ZPD should just tell suspects to drive faster before they get caught. At least they'll actually listen.

The two cruisers chased Yax to Outback Island through an underwater tunnel north of Kapok Street. Yax is still speeding as our cruiser and LaFleur's are right behind. As the officers leave the tunnel, a fog shows up. It was harder to see, but a faint red light is still visible. Yax didn't care about the potential vision hazard (his bangs were already a vision hazard), so he sped up.

As Judy slowly accelerated due to the fear of slipping, Nick sees LaFleur accelerate wildly ahead of them and go past the fog. Not long after, the officers heard her on the radio.

"Zut alors! Yax shot my tire! Go ahead, you two! I'll just have to replace this!" LaFleur screamed on the radio.

"Got it!" Nick responded as they passed LaFleur and her cruiser stopped at the side of the road.

The two followed Yax closely, tailgating him as much as possible. The pickup truck's engine sputtering and a disgruntled Yax turns left in a fork in the road. Just as they were about to do a pit maneuver on Yax, the train crossing lights lit up and Yax put his foot on the accelerator pedal and pushed the truck's engine to its limits. Judy followed suit, but a train blocked the cruiser just before they passed the crossing and Yax escapes.

"Darn it! Yax got lucky. Hopefully, this thing doesn't take too long." Judy said to herself as Nick looked frustrated.

"Dispatch. Suspect is located in… the Marsh district in Outback Island. 10-24."

"Outback Island? 10-4. I'll see if I can spare some units. We've contained almost 70% of the naturalized mammals. Dispatch out." Clawhauser responded.

It took two minutes for the train to pass by and Nick and Judy finally enter the Marsh community. Strangely, this place seemed so backwater compared to anywhere else in Zootopia. Sure, the locals had cellphones and vehicles, but they still choose to live close to the marshes in brick houses and the only pavement is the road! There are flies and mosquitoes everywhere! Judy stopped and said hello to a grey koala sitting in a eucalyptus tree through the cruiser's closed window.

"Hi. I'm Officer Judy Hopps of the ZPD. Have you seen a red pickup truck pass by here a few minutes ago?"

"G'day, mate. That' big red truck went through the ol' factory farther down the road, mate. Watch yer backs ova there. That place has been abandoned for err… 17 years, mate. Good luck!" The koala said as he went back to sleep with a leaf on his mouth.

"Uh… what?" Judy was puzzled by the strange dialect.

"He said that Yax went to the abandoned factory, mate." Nick said as he imitated the snoozing koala's accent.

The officers drove to the factory and see Yax's pickup truck parked near one of the bogs. The factory was very similar to the fishery back in the Docks: rusty, old and devoid of any life. It appeared to be a shell of its former glory. Just to be safe, Nick and Judy sprayed themselves with mosquito repellant in the glove box that was normally used when entering the rainforest district. As Judy got out of the cruiser, her feet touch the soft, sticky mud. Nick approached the pickup truck while Judy was lagged behind with the mud on her paws drying pretty quickly.

"Oh my god. Judy, you won't believe this! Come here!" Nick screamed and Judy ran to him. "His 'check engine' light is on! Haha! The truck appears to be completely empty, on the other hand."

"Oh, you!" Judy playfully punched Nick's arm.

They scoped out the area to look for Yax's whereabouts. Judy was looking at the left side of the factory until Nick whistled to her. Judy headed to his location, which was by the slightly rusty stairs.

"Carrots." Nick catches the bunny's attention as he points at the stairs of this gigantic rust bucket. "It's déjà freakin' vu. There's hoof tracks made of mud over here. This is it. Take your tranq gun out."

The officers ran up the stairs and opened a rusty metal door, which is eerily similar to the one in the fishery. They enter the door and it appears they are in an abandoned office area of the factory. A wooden door in the same room led us to the catwalk of the factory.

The inside of the factory was smoggy. Beneath the catwalk were pools of marsh water. It seems that this place was abandoned due to rising waters.

As Judy took her first step on the catwalk, Yax cackles at the other end. He looks much hairier than before. Luckily, the scent of the marsh masks his body odor.

"Hey, you two. It's been a while, man." Yax greeted the officers, who can hardly see him.

"Yax! Why are you doing all of this? Why are you bringing the city to its doom? What did it do to you?" Judy asked the delusional yak whose eyes she can only see.

"Well, my friends. I have an answer for that. The voice of nature told me to. It chose ME, out of everyone in the planet. ME! I am its messenger and its vessel! I have achieved enlightenment and I am now at one with it, man!"

"So, where is this flower that you used to naturalize everyone?" Nick interrogates the yak.

"Well, I got them from a _certain_ individual, bro. I just told him what it's supposed to do and he got the flowers quickly! I gotta thank Doug for hooking me up to him! He spied on Mr. Big and saw him meeting up with that individual long before the Night Howler incident. He's even Doug's personal supplier!"

"And where did you even get the money to hire Doug?" Judy asked with a stoic voice.

"Simple. Nangi brainwashed her yoga students and told them that donating to the club will strengthen their chakra, bro. It looks like Zootopia is filled with rich, gullible fools."

"Well, why did you naturalize everyone?" Nick questioned him.

"Well, I'll put it bluntly, man. The voice of nature told me this: 'Bring balance to the world. Return everything to the way it used to be.' What do you think that means, huh? It means that we have to go back to our savage ways, man! Nangi explained this to me and now… now we approach the dawn of a new beginning!"

"But what if it was a prophecy, Yax? What if it really meant was for us to stop you and save Zootopia? Yax, you could've simply misinterpreted the message! Just surrender yourself, please!" Judy explained to the maniacal Yax. At the same time, the smog seemed to have dissipated.

Yax finally appeared in front of us. He looks much hairier than before. Luckily, the scent of the marsh masks his body odor and his lower body is hidden behind a shrouded box. Judy was relieved to NOT see 'that' place.

"What if there was no voice of nature? What if your crazy brain made it all up? Why in the world are you following a figment of your imagination?" Nick questioned Yax, who is now standing in a hunched position.

"Ha! You two simply want to live out with your sinful ways! Witness it with me, bros! A new age has dawned and we will finally return to our old selves! Prey is eaten by the predator and the only harmony left will be the Circle! The Circle of life, man!"

"Cheese and crackers, Yax! I can't let you do this! This has to end now!" Judy turned serious as she screamed at Yax.

The officers pointed our tranq guns at him, trying to get a clear shot at him. All of a sudden, a dart fire under the box, sending a naturalizing dart speeding towards the rabbit.


	14. It's called a sacrifice, sweetheart!

"JUDY! NO!" Nick screamed as he ran in front of the rabbit.

Nick stared at Judy's purple eyes. Giving her one last smile, he said one last thing. "Run."

Judy sprinted back from the middle of the catwalk and back to the office. Suddenly, Judy heard a lock close. The rusty door appears to have been locked by some mechanism. The door handle won't budge and the lock was too strong for Judy to kick. Judy heard footsteps coming towards her/

"Ha! The plan worked, man! I'm outta here! Later, dudes!" Yax screamed from afar as he went up the roof. Nick became naturalized and ripped off his equipment with his teeth as he crept towards the frightened bunny.

"Oh no… Nick. Please. Don't do this." Judy whimpered as the naturalized Nick approaches her, his mouth salivating and his teeth awaiting an overdue rabbit meal. Judy sat and cowered underneath a table.

"D'accord! Au revoir, un porte!" A familiar voice screamed from outside. The rusty door was kicked from the outside and it flew into the room. The sudden noise scared Nick as he scampers back to the catwalk.

"Hah! La jour jambe était en valeur!" LaFleur comes in and sees the little bunny cowering underneath the table beside the door, scared out of her mind. "Ah Judy, are you okay?"

"Nick… Nick's been naturalized. It's all my fault!" Judy confessed to LaFleur and started crying.

"Mon dieu, mon amie! It is okay. We can cure him after we get that yak. So stop weeping! Let's save Nick, d'accord?" LaFleur comforted the little rabbit.

Judy crept out of the table, stood, and wiped her tears off. "Okay. Thank you, LaFleur. I would have died if you didn't show up."

"Thankfully, my kick is very strong!" LaFleur bragged about her legs. Shje appears to be wearing a metal cover in her hooves. "Now where is Nick and the smelly yak?"

"I'm sure they both went to the roof."

"Then we must go to the roof! Allons-y!" LaFleur flicked her hair and grabbed Judy's hand.

LaFleur and Judy ran through the catwalk and up to the roof of the abandoned factor. The roof seems to be sturdy compared to the rest of the factory. Neither officer can see Nick but Judy finds Yax at the east end of the roof reloading his naturalizer.

"Hello again, Judy and… uh… what's your name, man?" Yax wondered.

"Je m'appelle LaFleur et ne l'oubliez pas!"

"Hey, lady. I can speak to the voice of nature, not to weird mammals with weird languages."

"Oops, sorry! It's LaFleur, darling." LaFleur apologized with a giggle while Judy stood there, confused.

"See? That wasn't so bad, man! Now push Judy down the roof, will you?" Yax says as he shoots a naturalizing dart towards LaFleur.

Unexpectedly, Nick jumps out from behind Judy and takes the dart for LaFleur. It doesn't seem to affect him.

"Nick!" Judy was surprised and overjoyed that her partner was still alive.

"Ah! Bonjour Nick. How nice of you to join us!" LaFleur deduced.

"B... but he was about to eat me earlier. What happened?"

"I do not know. Maybe he cares about you a lot, and it became its own instinct to protect you? Maybe it needed a bit of time to take? I'm sure he's not attacking me since I'm with you, I guess. But what do I know? I'm just an antelope." LaFleur stated.

"Uh-oh. I think I forgot to prepare for this." Yax said to himself as he looked at the three officers.

Nick rubs his nose at Judy's stomach before staring at Yax. Nick barks at him as he frantically reloads. Judy shot a tranq dart at Yax, but Yax seems to have a strong will. He took aim at the rabbit and then the naturalized Nick runs at him right before he pulled the trigger.

"Nick? No, don't- NIIIIIIIIIIIICKKKKKKKKK!" Judy screamed as Nick tackles Yax off the roof of the four-story tall factory. A loud thud was emitted on the ground. LaFleur and Judy looked over the roof and it appears they landed in soft mud, right beside the water. Judy can hear Nick loudly whimpering and LaFleur quickly took out her radio.

"Zut! Dispatch! This is Officer LaFleur! We have a 10-99 in the abandoned factory in the Marsh District of Outback Island and an injured suspect! Dépêche-toi, s'il vous plait!" Officer LaFleur shouted.

"Cheese and Crackers! I'll send two ambulances ASAP! Who's the officer?" Clawhauser asked.

"CLAWHAUSER, IT'S NICK!" Judy panicked.

LaFleur's radio is suddenly cut off. Judy ran back down as fast as she can and ran to Nick's side as LaFleur grabbed the first-aid kit in her cruiser. Yax, on the other hand is snoozing as he managed to land on a softer spot in the mud.

Nick appeared to have sustained broken bones and a large bloody cut on his chest, probably received from the edge of the roof.

"Nick, please stay with me! Nick, an ambulance is arriving soon." Judy wept uncontrollably as she comforted Nick and placed pressure on the bloody wound.

He lifts his head and licks off the bunny's tears as he shuts his eyes.

"NICK?! PLEASE, DON'T LEAVE ME! NICK? NICK! LAFLEUR, DO SOMETHING!" Judy screamed as she was bawling her eyes out.

"Keep applying pressure on his cut, Judy! Do not worry. I am sure he will make it!" LaFleur stated.

Sirens finally arrived to the factory. Two ambulances and a cop cruiser rushed over to us. Nick was placed in a stretcher and brought in one ambulance and Yax was placed on the other.

"This is a very personal moment for you. Go ahead and accompany Nick. I will talk to the other officers and stay with Yax to make sure he does not escape, d'accord?" LaFleur comforted the weeping bunny.

"Okay. Thank you, LaFleur. Don't let that yak escape."

"And do not leave that fox alone. He needs you now more than ever."

Judy got on the ambulance with Nick inside and held his paw as he was rushed to the hospital.


	15. A Cure

The paramedic finished cleaning and patched up Nick's cut and it'll hold until they arrive at the hospital. Judy stared at Nick's half-closed eyes as the chaos outside seems to have weakened.

"Hey, Nick." Judy smiled, knowing he's going to be survive. "I know you probably can't hear a thing I'm saying, but Yax is under arrest now. We did it."

"…"

"Why, Nick? Why did you take the dart for me?"

"…"

"Why did you tackle Yax off the roof? You crazy fool!" Judy started tearing up again.

"…"

"I'm… I'm sorry, Nick. You should've let me take the dart. Now, you're…" Judy broke down as the paramedic beside them turned his head and looked out the small window, trying to ignore the waterworks.

Judy sat in the waiting room as Nick was rushed to the ER. She took out her phone and scrolled through her camera roll and looked at all the pictures and selfies with Nick. Later, she remembered their night on the Ferris wheel incident and cried herself to sleep. At 9 PM, a tigress nurse approached the sleeping, woke her up, and escorted her outside the room where Nick lays asleep. Judy approached the skunk doctor who just exited the room.

"Doc, is Nick gonna be okay?"

"Yes, he's gonna make it." The doctor verified as a smile beamed across the bunny's face. "The pressure in the laceration was sufficient to form a blood clot, preventing massive blood loss. We used anesthetics to put him to sleep. The wound was sutured and we placed several braces on his limbs to encourage bone healing. You can go in right now, but he is still asleep. I had him restrained and muzzled to avoid any complications with the healing when he wakes up."

"Thank you. Thank you so much, doctor."

"Anytime!" The skunk and the tigress walk away.

Judy entered the room and she reunites with Nick once again. Like what the doctor said, he is currently restrained and asleep. There's an IV attached to his right front leg. Judy sat in the soft green chair beside him and turned her head to the sleeping fox.

"Hey, Nick. Are you alright?"

"…"

"Looks like you'll make it. I never thought of you as a tough guy." Judy laughed and cried tears of joy.

"…"

"Thank you, Nick." Judy took a deep breath and exhaled. "Don't worry. I'll be right here with you for tonight. I still have to go to work tomorrow, though. Good night, warrior." The rabbit gave Nick a kiss in the snout as she went to sleep in the soft green recliner chair beside him.

As they slept, Judy's phone rang at midnight and Nick was startled and was given a rude awakening. He started barking. Judy went to him and carefully stroked his snout. Nick calms down and licks her face. Then, she answered the unknown number.

"Hello? Who is this?"

"You DO realize that naturalization is indefinite?" The voice answers.

"Yes, I know but… who is this?"

"Meet me at the port of abandoned fishery by 3 AM. I'll help you turn Nick back to normal… for $200, alright?" The caller hung up.

" _Could this be true? How did he know Nick was naturalized? Heck, how does he even know Nick? It sounds like a trap, but… I'll do anything to turn Nick back to normal._ " Judy thought to herself as her heart fills with hope.

"Nick. I have to go somewhere. Don't bite the nurses, please?" Judy smiled. Nick happily barked at the bunny and closes his eyes.

Judy took a bus to her apartment. The apartment was quiet except for her neighbours Bucky and Pronk, who are still awake playing some kind of shooting game. Judy changed into her casual clothes along with a purple hoodie, and hailed for a taxi. Judy went to the bank to withdraw two $100 bills from the ATM, and continued all the way to the docks. Judy was greeted by mist as she stepped out of the taxi. The fishery looks more haunting than before as a faint mist that enveloped the structure.

Judy walked to the port and saw a figure standing by the port alongside a mini yacht. Feeling paranoid, Judy hid her phone in her hoodie's pocket and positioned her paw hand near her tranq gun holster in the possible instance that this may be a trap. She slowly approached the mammal.

"Were you the mammal who called me?"

"Are you a dumb bunny? Of course it's me." The mammal was a male and talked with his back facing the rabbit.

Judy was ticked off but since he was her only hope of curing Nick and the rest of Zootopia, she had no choice but to control her temper.

"I have the money. I'll give it once you help me cure Nick."

"Sure. Hop onboard. One rule though. You must NEVER tell anyone about my hideout."

"Why not?"

"Look, do you wanna help Nick or not? If yes, at least accept my right to privacy!"

"…Fine."

"By the way, you don't need the tranq gun. I'm an honest mammal. And you can keep your phone, but you have to remove the battery for now."

Judy hesitated, but she boarded the vessel anyway. The bunny sat at the right side of the boat as the mammal covered by a black overcoat and fedora sailed the boat. Judy looked as the silent Zootopia as they sailed out of the docks and to the west of Zootopia. She was still quite sleepy, so she took a quick nap while keeping her paw near the holster.

"Hey, wake up! Welcome to Casa Mia!" He snapped his fingers at the bunny as they approached an island. Judy got out of the boat and stepped on the white sand, bordered by clear, blue waters. The mammal goes into the tree line and Judy followed him to a small wooden makeshift hut with leaves as a roof.

The mammal takes off his hat and his overcoat, and he's now wearing a tank top and shorts. He appears to be an old fox with some gray fur on his head. Judy looked back at the shore, and can faintly see Zootopia. This island looks like a paradise.

"You're a fox?"

"You got a problem with that?" He stared at the rabbit with old, weakened eyes.

"As if. I'll have you know my partner's a fox!"

The fox gets a bag in a wooden shelf and fills it with a HAZMAT suit and a re-sealable container.

"So, Nick and many other citizens are naturalized. Well, you're in luck! I have the flowers that can cure them all. Follow me." The fox motioned Judy to follow.

The two left the hut and ventured deeper through the lush forests, filled with different trees. Judy wasn't sure how he managed to survive in here all by himself. He led the rabbit in front of a waterfall, which roared with unimaginable strength.

"You see that waterfall?" The fox points to the crashing waters. "Those flowers grow behind those crashing. Wait here." The fox opened the bag and wore the HAZMAT suit and carried the container in his right paw.

He ventures through the side of the waterfall and disappears. In a few minutes, he returned and soaked himself on the waterfall. He removed his HAZMAT suit, approached Judy and hands me flower buds with a yellow and orange color, similar to the dawn sky.

"The pollen is what causes the naturalization. The waterfall removed any clinging pollen on the container or me. That is a pack of 'Nature's Call'. Do NOT open it unless you're wearing a mask! That'll be $200."

"'Nature's Call?' Yuck. Please tell me you didn't come up with that name. You know what that expression means, right?"

"Don't blame me. Yax came up with that and it actually fits. Now, the $200 please?"

"Yax? You're the supplier Yax was talking about!"

"Of course I'm the supplier." The fox rubbed the bridge between his nose. "Wasn't it obvious when I told you that I was the only one that can help you? Hell, I didn't even care what Yax was gonna do with it. Just give me the money and you can finally treat my son… oops."

"Son? Are you his father?" Judy asked the fox, whose face quickly filled with regret.

"Damn. I guess I can't take that back now, can I?" The fox sighed. "Yes, I'm Nick's father. My name is Rick Wilde. I'll explain everything later. Let's go back to the hut for now."


	16. A Past Long Forgotten

Judy followed Rick Wilde back to the hut. He brewed some tea with some tea leaves he picked in his little garden outside and boiled it on a pot above a campfire. She placed the container of Nature's Call in a bamboo table. They sat in the little chairs inside the hut and Judy finally got a closer look at him.

This fox is very old, probably in his fifties. He has wrinkles on his face, grey fur on the top of his head and his eyes are pitch-black, as if he had no soul left inside of him. He lacks any fur in his left wrist, probably burnt out or something. He really bears a resemblance to Nick, minus the smug smile. Instead, he had a serious face. He brought in the kettle of tea and poured some on a small porcelain teacup.

"Okay, missy." He checked his wristwatch. "It's… 4 A.M. You got three questions and I'll escort you back to the docks before anyone wakes up there." He sipped his tea.

"Um…alright then." Judy gulped as her stomach fills with butterflies.

"Looks like he never noticed the carrot pen in my jacket's left pocket!" Judy though to herself. "I made some modifications during the time Nick was in the academy, and now it can record up to 10 minutes!"

Judy loudly cleared her throat and swiftly clicked the record button simultaneously.

"Okay… Mr. Rick Wilde. How are you still alive?"

"You know that accident in the docks years ago? That was really a supply run gone wrong. I was importing Night Howlers to Mrs. Big, but the ZPD ambushed us. I had to escape, and I knew that I couldn't return to Zootopia anymore now that I had the police on my tail. I managed to escape and everyone assumed I slept with the fishes, even little Nick and my beloved Mary Anne. Poor kid probably thinks I never existed." He quickly wiped away a tear. "That's question one."

"Mrs. Big? Why did you have to meet Mr. Big's grandmama?"

"You know Mrs. Big?"

"No, but I know her son. She passed away long before I got here."

"I see. Well… I was Mrs. Big's smuggler. I used to smuggle Night Howler serum for her R&D guy, Emmett Otterton."

"Mr. Otterton was a part of the mafia? Was that how Mr. Big found out that the savage serum was caused by Night Howlers?"

"Yes, dear. The botanist appearance is just a disguise. Mrs. Big only used the serum as a torture method before icing informants. I guess word got out and that ram Doug found me and requested for some shipments." Rick sighed as he stared into his cup of tea. "That ram probably sold some of the flowers to farmers outside the city. I'm telling you, he did a lot of surveillance and stuff just to find me hiding in Outback Island a year ago." He sighed. "I'll count all of that as question two, alright?"

"Oh, thank you. I forgot to keep track of that. Question three: Why won't you come back to Zootopia with me and reunite with Nick again?"

"Well, to put it bluntly, I'm still a wanted fox. After all, I AM the fox who introduced the Night Howlers and Nature's Call to Zootopia. I'm sure the ZPD is still looking for me right now. You wouldn't want Nick to see that his old man has a big target on his back, do ya?" He sipped the last of his tea and stood up. "Well, that's game."

Rick went outside and prepared the boat for another trip back to Zootopia. Judy stare at the horizon and watched the moon falling back down, as if it was sinking into the ocean.

"Alright, what're you waiting for? Grab the container and get on the boat, already. I have to relocate again."

Judy got on the boat and as they quietly sail back to Zootopia, she can't the thought of Nick off her head. Rick noticed the bunny worrying and calmed her down. Right before sunrise, the two arrived at the Docks. Judy jumped off with the container in hard and Rick hollered at her one last time.

"Okay, little rabbit. Tell Nick that's the third and final favor. The genie is now free."

"Wait… what?"

"Tell him that it's the suit store when he's up and walking again. By the way, you can go ahead and play that recording to Nick… and Mary Anne. They deserve to know. Nick's finally matured, after all."

"Mary Anne? Wait, how'd you know about the recorder?"

"I heard static as soon as I heard a faint click earlier in the hut. I'm old, but I'm still gold, especially my hearing!" Rick boasted as he checked his watch. "Damn. It's 6am. See you never, Ms. Hopps."

He sailed away and gave the bunny a salute as he disappeared in the rising orange sun. Judy placed the battery back in her phone and called a cab for a quick trip back to the hospital.


	17. The Road to Recovery

"Ugh… Where… am I?"

"Nick!"

Judy placed her magazine down, jumped off her seat and hugged Nick lying down in his bed.

"Judy…?"

"Nick! You're normal again!"

"Yeah, and it feels good... except for this hug. You're squeezing my bones. Owowowowow."

"Oh, sorry!"

Nick tries to hold in a scream as Judy finally let go of him.

" _I shouldn't have hugged him, but I missed the 'real' Nick._ " Judy thought to herself.

"So, what happened to me?" Nick asked the ecstatic bunny.

"You were naturalized, silly. I found some flowers and Dr. Badger made an antidote in 3 days!"

"3 days? What happened in the factory and why am I in complete pain right now?"

"Well, after you took the dart…"

Judy just kept talking and talking about everything that happened in those 3 days.

"…And I met someone who gave me some of the flowers to cure you and now, you're back to normal!" Judy stopped and gasped for air.

"And what happened to Chief and the civvies?"

"They're all being cured right now." Judy grabbed his paw. "Because I found the flowers, she gave the first antidote to me!"

"Huh. So I was naturalized and I protected you. Then, I fell down a four-story factory. Seems like naturalized me is a nut, and you were being a dumb bunny."

Judy playfully punched Nick's uninjured arm.

"So, who is this someone that gave you the flowers?"

"I'll tell you when you're up and walking. For now, it's time for some lunch."

Judy pressed the 'call nurse' button on Nick's bed. Soon after, an otter nurse entered the room and Judy asked for lunch for the recovering fox. She returned and gave Nick's lunch tray to Judy and the nurse left to tend other patients. Judy opened up the tray and she was greeted by an odorless broccoli chowder.

"Here, eat this... broccoli chowder… thing."

"DEUUEAUGH! I know I'm an omnivore, but broccolis and I don't get along."

"C'mon, don't be such a kit. If you eat this, I'll get you some blueberries from the farm!" Judy smiled at Nick.

"With a smile like that, who would say 'no'? Fine, I might as well suffer some more for my dumb bunny."

The couple laughed and Judy watched as Nick bravely ate the broccoli chowder.

" _Strange_. _I feel like I'd rather spend some time with Nick over patrolling right now. I'm sure he's happier with me around."_ Judy thought to herself as Nick snaps his fingers, asking the bunny to try some of it. Of course, Judy refused.

* * *

Three Months Later…

* * *

Nick's feeling much better. He can walk normally again. Judy visited him every day at 2 to 3 PM, and he lights up every time he sees the rabbit. Nick passed the physical test and has been cleared for duty. Judy held his paw as she escorted the fox to the cruiser.

"Hey, Judy. Thanks for visiting me every day. Seeing you pop up in here made my stay here less of a pain. You wouldn't believe the amount of daytime television that I had to suffer."

Judy smiled at him as she carefully placed the fox on the passenger seat. He smelled the outside air and his face expressed bliss. He turned to Judy and asked her a question.

"By the way, who was that someone you say three months ago? I have a good memory, you know."

Judy sighed and took out the carrot pen from the cruiser's glovebox. She placed a note on it saying 'DO NOT OVERWRITE'. She peeled it off and threw it out the window. The entire recording is still in the memory and she looks at Nick.

"Well, I'd rather let this recording answer that question."

Judy closed the cruiser's window then pressed the play button on the carrot recorder. Nick hears Judy's voice… then she mentioned Rick Wilde. Nick hears the voice of an old man and he felt his heart beat faster and his mind unable to comprehend the revelation he is currently witnessed. Judy let the recording play from start to finish. She places the carrot pen back in the glovebox and looks at Nick, who seems to be shell-shocked or something.

"…Dad… My dad is still alive. I can't believe it…"

"I'm sorry I couldn't tell you sooner, but it was for the best."

"You waited three months to play this to me?"

"If I told you earlier, you wouldn't be able to do anything. Even he knew you were hurt. It was for your sake that I told you now that you're fine."

"You got me there." Nick chuckled and turned around. "Is there anything else he said?"

"Hmm… Aha! I remember him saying that 'this was the third and final wish' and 'it's the suit store'."

"Third wish… Suit store… Judy, start the car right now."

"What? Why?"

"I gotta go to the Nocturnal District. Now."

"I'm coming with you. I don't want you hurting yourself again."

"Fine. Let's go."

Judy started the cruiser and drove down Lionheart Avenue and took the tunnel down to the Nocturnal District. It was 10 AM so everyone in here was closing up shop. The district is filled with nocturnal animals, including raccoons and hyenas. It looked like a sort of slum, but the rabbit knows that looks can be deceiving. Nick stared around his childhood home and he doesn't seem to miss it one bit. Oddly enough, the officers saw a running raccoon wearing blue clothes holding a question mark staff being chased by a vixen with a badge. They assumed that was an undercover cop, so they ignored her and minded their own business.

"Okay. Turn left here at Blindside Avenue. Stop at that brown building 4 blocks to the right."

The cruiser arrives at an abandoned building. It's been bordered up with wooden panels and some signs saying 'Do Not Enter'. It had a crimson appearance with spray tags covering the outside.

"Well, this is it. Home, sweet, home."

"This… This looks like a very old building."

"Well, yeah. The building was abandoned for almost twenty years. Now help me take off these planks, Carrots?"

Judy helped Nick rip off some of the planks. Some civvies stared at the officers, but they ignored the cops. They entered the building and their noses were quickly filled with dust and they ran back outside and coughed. Nick and Judy got some paper towels in the cruiser and cover their noses with it as they entered the room filled with dusty walls and furniture.

"This is the suit store. My mom once told me that she and dad lived happily in here." Nick talked in a muffled voice

"This place looks really comfy. Why'd you leave?

"Wanna know why? Go outside and look at the place two blocks to the left."

Judy stepped back outside and looked two blocks to the left. She squinted her eyes and can faintly see an illuminated sign that reads 'Zootopia Scout Club'. So that's where IT happened. The little bunny hopped back into the building.

"Alright. 'Once you remove all memory of me, my blessing I will bestow upon thee'. There's pictures everywhere too." Nick mumbled to himself as Judy slowly approached him.

"What, you're a poet now?" Judy sneered behind him.

"Why? You want me to serenade you or something? But my mom told me that poem a long time ago. She told me every time she left for work back when I was a kit."

Judy turned her head and sees several dusty display panels. Inside each were paintings, with a few of them depicting Nick's ancestors from a long time ago.

"There's an awful lot of paintings in here. I'm surprised no one stole them."

"Paintings…memory…are my parents in any of these paintings?"

"Bingo! We just need to look for paintings with your parents in them! There's one of your dad right here." Judy pointed at one depicting Mr. Rick Wilde standing like a gentlefox with a stylish wooden walking cane. The fox was wearing a top hat along with a three-piece suit.

Nick jumped and scratched the painting. Only a clean canvas was hidden behind it.

"There's probably more in here. Help me find the rest, Judy."

The two found a few pictures with ancestors of the Wilde family in it, took a clear picture of each, and ripped them apart. There was only a cloud of dust left behind each one. They headed to the top floor and found a painting with Nick, his mom and his dad. It depicted Mr. Rick Wilde leaning on the grand opening of the suit shop. Alongside him was a pregnant Mary Anne Wilde. They were smiling and Rick looked classy in a black suit and top hat. Mary Anne Wilde, on the other hand, wore a beautiful red dress. She held her stomach, carrying a young Nicholas Wilde.

"Well, this should be the one. This one has a thicker frame than the rest… the problem is that this is probably the most important thing in my entire life." Nick takes his claws out.

"Wait. At least try to take a picture or something. Wouldn't you wanna remember what your dad looked like?"

"...Yeah. I think I should. I might try to look for him later on."

Nick took out his phone and carefully took a photograph of the entire portrait before proceeding the rip it open.

"There's a small switch in here."

Nick flicked the switch and a rumbling sound was created in the basement. The duo heard this and quickly ran down. A secret door opened in this cold, dark basement. A lone safe stands in the middle of the room.

"A safe with a rotating lock? This shouldn't be too hard to crack."

"And how do you know how to open a safe?"

"Foxes have good hearing too, you know."

Nick placed his ear in the cold, hard steel. In a matter of minutes, Nick casually opened the safe.

"What the..." Nick gasped.

Nick was motionless and Judy approached him. Judy turned on the torch on here phone and pointed at the safe. She was greeted by a yellow glow.


	18. Ending: A Brighter Tomorrow

Nick started to shake violently and the fox ran around the room in utter excitement. Judy, on the other hand, grabbed one of the contents inside and placed it on top of the safe.

"OMIGOSH, OMIGOSH, OMIGOSH I CAN'T BELIEVE IT." Nick jittered as he looked at Judy.

"Well… I'll be damned." Judy shone a light on the yellow bar. Engraved in the bars are words '1 kilo fine gold'. "It's freaking gold." Judy peeked inside the safe again. There appears to be about twenty gold ingots in here… and a dusty envelope.

"Alright. Calm down, Fox News. There's a letter here for you." Judy took out the envelope with 'Nick Wilde' eloquently written on the back.

Nick calmed down and opened the envelope. Inside was a letter, written by his dad. Nick ripped the envelope open and spoke out loud the letter to Judy.

"Nicholas Piberius Wilde, if you are reading this, it means you are now a matured, adult fox. I might have not been able to meet you, but I want to say that I'm so proud of you."

Nick walked around the room as he read the next paragraph.

"I know I won't be with you in your entire life. I'm so sorry for that. If only foxes were treated better, maybe I would never have joined the mafia and I would still be with you and Mary Anne as your loving father and a great husband to your mother."

Nick sat down on the safe as Judy stared at him.

"Inside is my pay for my services to Mrs. Big. They're yours now, and be wise with what you do with it. Once again, I'm so sorry. Don't try to find me. Zootopia is a better place without me. Your loving father, Richard Wilde."

Nick dropped the letter and it slowly fell to the cold, hard ground.

"Dad… Well, I guess I should take these. Maybe I'll place them on my bank account."

"Hey, don't forget your taxes." Judy snickered at the fox.

"Ugh. Judy, are you always a buzzkill?" Nick joked as the two grabbed some of the ingots. "Can you help me out?"

No one was outside, but the cops readied their weapons in case someone tries to steal them anyway. They placed all the ingots on the cruiser's trunk. Unsurprisingly, the streets were pretty much empty and they drove off to Zootopia Jewelry Dealers.

"Well, that's a lot of money. So, what're you gonna do now?"

"Call me crazy, but I'd still like to stay with the ZPD."

"Okay, now that's crazy. Why, though?"

"The ZPD almost like my family now."

Nick's phone rang. He looks at the screen and it's an unknown number.

"Hello?"

"Nicholas. It's been a while. So you found your inheritance, correct?"

"Mr. Big! You've been cured? That's great!" Nick instantly recognized the old, shriveled voice.

"I appreciate your concern, Nicholas but you have not answered my question. Have you found your inheritance?"

"The gold bars, you mean? Yes, sir. I found them and I'm currently going to a gold dealer to verify them."

"Perfect. I kept my grandmama's promise to your father and placed alarms there. They never rang until now. Go ahead and use it however you wish."

"Thank you, Mr. Big. That means a lot to me."

Nick and Judy brought the bars of gold to the Zootopia Jewelry Store. After verification, it was determined that the gold bars were 22k gold bars and the two officers were in awe. They drove straight to the bank and Nick deposited them to his bank account. Nick is unbelievably ecstatic while Judy was understandably shocked.

The cops finally returned to the ZPD. For some reason, the entire police station was dark. Nick and Judy went to the common room and… BAM! A bunch of officers popped out of Clawhauser's desk, including the lovable cheetah and even Chief Bogo.

"Hmm? What for?"

"What else, Nick? You're back in business!"

"Congratulations, you two! You've saved the city once again, and I'm relieved the station is still in one piece!"

"Now, let's go watch the Zootopia Cup Final already! It's starting!"

Nick and Judy grabbed their seats as the Zootopia national anthem was sung by Gazelle. To the civilians of Zootopia, this was like a national holiday.

"Oh, by the way guys. Nick's rich." Judy blurted out to the room

"Oh, Judy. You-"

Nick was subsequently swarmed by the officers as they ask the newly-rich fox. Judy burst out in laughter. All the officers celebrated Sahara Scorpions scores the first goal of the game off a header by Gerard Pronghorn and the camera zooms to Gazelle celebrating. Later, after the game finished 5-4, the entire Scorpions team held the trophy up just as Nick and Judy were held up by the officers in celebration.

 _And here ends the second chapter of the life of Judy Hopps in Zootopia. It's a bumpy ride, but so is life itself. There are some things in life you have to do. But no matter what happens, there's always somebody who has your back. Never let your limitations be your downfall. And no matter what happens, always strive for hope, no matter how small it is._


	19. Epilogue Part 1: How You Met My Mother

Nick drove the cruiser to the Meadowlands and parked the cruiser at the Meadowlands Retirement Home.

"Meadowlands Retirement Home? What are we doing here?"

"Judy. You know how I was hustling since to age of twelve right?"

"Of course."

"I haven't told this to anyone… except you. My hustling was more than just for personal profit."

Nick pressed the elevator button to go up.

"I had to get some money to take care of my mother."

Nick and Judy walked all the way to room 310. As Nick opened the door, Judy sees an old fox looking outside the window, onto the lush fields. The room was engulfed by a soft breeze from the window. The officers walked beside the old fox.

"Judy, meet my mother, Mary Anne Wilde."

"Hi, Mrs. Wilde."

"…"

Mrs. Wilde was an old fox. She had grey fur in her head, like Rick. She also had glasses and she just stared outside the window. She didn't even move a muscle.

"Is she alright?"

"She… has Alzheimer's."

"I'm so sorry, Nick."

"Give me the carrot pen. Hopefully she'll remember my dad's voice."

Judy tossed the carrot pen on Nick's hand. Nick sighed as he pressed the play button. The recording finally plays, and Rick Wilde's voice can be clearly heard as he was talking about his fake death.

"Rick…?" Mrs. Wilde said as Nick eyes opened wide in disbelief.


	20. Epilogue Part 2: A Promotion?

"Hopps. My office, now." Chief Bogo said on Judy's radio.

"Looks like someone's in trouble! I'll wait here, Carrots." Nick sipped his coffee by the main hall as Judy ran off to Chief Bogo's room

"Now, Judy. You've done a lot for this station more than anyone else. That is why I'm offering you a promotion to Lieutenant."

"A promotion?! Chief, I'm honored, but if I accept this, what's gonna happen?"

"Well, for starters, you get a raise. Second, you will be monitoring all the officers in Zootopia now."

"What does that mean?"

"It means that you don't have to be patrolling around the city anymore. Now, you can just sit here in the station and chill out more."

"This sounds nice, but what about Nick?"

"Yes, Nick. He will be promoted to Sergeant and will be assigned a new partner. He'll still be able to patrol around."

 _"Nick with a new partner? I don't feel okay with that. Besides, I don't wanna sit around in here and do nothing._ " Judy felt uneasy as she thought of her decision.

"Sorry, Chief. I'll have to pass this one." Judy sighed.

Judy jumped off the chair and saluted Chief Bogo before proceeding out of the door.

* * *

The Next Day...

* * *

"Hopps, Wilde. We have a 10-103F in progress under the bridge at the Docks."

"10-4, Dispatch. We're en route."

Judy notices Nick with his head outside the window and appears to be twitching.

"Hey, Nick. You seem tense. Is there something wrong?"

"No… N-nothing."

"Alright then."

The two officers got out of the cruiser and wend down the bridge. A soft breeze goes through Judy's ears and a leaf falls on her nose. She sneezed right away. As she peered inside the tunnel, there was nothing but mud inside. Shortly after, Nick shows up and walks through the tunnel.

"Hey Nick. No one's here. I'll report- Nick? what are you doing?"

"Hey, Carrots. I heard you refused the promotion to Lieutenant yesterday."

"Of course. Keeping tabs of you is exhausting enough already."

"…And also because I didn't want to leave you behind." Judy's ears drooped.

"Well, I didn't wanna leave you behind either. Sorry for getting hurt in the factory."

"So, where's the fight in progress?"

"Actually… The only fight in progress is inside my mind right now."

"Okay. Stop messing around, Nick. What'd you mean?"

"Wow… the leaves are quite beautiful this time of the year." Nick grabbed a falling leaf with his two fingers.

"I asked Clawhauser and Bogo to set this up so we can be alone together."

"Carrots. No, Judy. I can't believe I'm saying this… but I think I love you."

"What…?"

"I think there's no point in being rich if there's no one to spend it with, and I think you're the perfect girl for the job."

Nick turned his head to the rabbit.

"It's called a proposal, sweetheart."

Judy felt nervous as Nick dropped down on one knee and opened his right paw. Hidden was a small black box. The fox opens it and reveals a golden ring with a small diamond on top.

"Judy Hopps, will you marry me?"

Judy blushed and was paralyzed in an instant.

"Nick…"


	21. Author's Final Note

Wow... this this was a crazy first project. I gotta admit, I did not expect myself to write this much and reach almost 22k words. From the bottom of my heart, I want to thank every one of you readers. you guys are the best.

*Plays Final Fantasy XII Victory Theme*


End file.
